The Heart of Everything
by Aphrodite-Venus-u.k
Summary: Marcus Flint and Katie Bell meet each other after breakups with former partners and fall in love until the Dark Lord returns and threatens it all. Follows their relationship from Chamber of Secrets to years after Deathly Hallows
1. Chapter 1: Enchanted

Chapter One: Enchanted

Disclaimer: All characters belong to J.K. Rowling.

Author's Note: This fanfiction is going to be different from my other stories. This begins during Chamber of Secrets and goes up until three years after the Dark War. So, pay attention the time, so you don't get confused. Some of the chapters are other Marcus Flint/Katie Bell stories, just with more changes and deleted scenes added.

Time: Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets

Genre: Romance, Drama, and Friendship

Rating: PG-13

"I HATE YOU!" Avril Lestrange screamed at her boyfriend of two years.

"I'M SICK OF YOU AND YOUR GAMES!" Marcus Flint bellowed back. He was completely aware of the fact that the rest of the Slytherin house was staring at them. It wasn't everyday that they saw a row between couples; most rows happened in a private dungeon.

Avril raised her hand and slapped him. "YOU MAKE ME SICK!" She went after him again. Zoey McCann and Michelle Lang, two of her girlfriends, seized her and pulled her away. "WE'RE DONE, MARCUS FLINT! YOU HEAR ME! IT'S OVER!" she screamed as they drug her to the girls' dorm.

Chris Derrick (Slytherin Beater) and Damon Knightly exchanged looks. They had been Marcus's mates since three. Damon tugged on Marcus's shoulder. "You don't want to stick around here."

Marcus rubbed his cheek and followed the two boys out of the common room leaving the rest of the house standing open mouthed.

Marcus Flint and Avril Lestrange one of Slytherin's hottest couple was now history. The question that no one wanted to ask hung in the air: how long would they be single?

"What happened?" Chris asked.

Marcus jerked away from Damon's death grip. "Nothing."

"Sure."

Marcus walked away from his friends. "I told her no," he called over his shoulder.

Damon looked confused. "About what?"

"What do you think?"

"Oh, but it's not like you haven't before."

"I didn't want to tonight."

"She dumped you for that?" Chris inquired.

"Yep."

"That sucks," Damon muttered.

Katie Bell gathered her books. She was going to study in the library. It was a nightly ritual for her. The common room was too districting. Fred and George's constant jokes didn't help either. The library was the only place.

She rounded the corner and Marcus Flint run into her. Her books and papers went flying through the air. She gave him a look; he smiled.

She had known Marcus since she was three and he was five. They had taken flying lessons together. Most people who played Quidditch at Hogwarts had taken lessons in the same place. She hadn't spoken to him in years.

She bent down and started gathering her papers. "Well, are you going to help me or not? Or are you just going to stand there like an idiot?"

He bent down. "I'm not an idiot, Katie."

Katie took her books from him. "I know."

They both stood up and looked at each other.

"Watch where you're going."

"Katie, you ran into me."

She began walking again. "No, you about killed me."

Marcus watched her leave. She was so beautiful and she didn't even realize it. Her blond hair shimmered as it crept its way down her back in a wonderful mix of golden magic. Her sea coloured eyes made her look like a long lost princess. Her pale skin enchanted her features making her angelic. Her body was toned from her Quidditch days, but she was somehow soft. She was a warrior on the field, but a lady everywhere else.

He shook his head. He had to snap out of it. Come on, he had just broken up with his long time girlfriend. He couldn't jump into a relationship two hours after one had ended. He knew that he had reputation as a player, but he didn't want that reputation to be true. It was a rumour probably started by someone who hated him.

He smiled. If he dated Katie, it would sure tick Wood off.

Yep, the boy was enchanted by the girl.

Katie made her way to the library. She couldn't get him out of her head. His soft, dark hair that when it was long curled at the base of his neck. His soft, chocolate eyes that were like a tunnel of joy that never seemed to end. His skin appeared flawless, but she knew of the past wounds that he covered. His body was one of a Quidditch player; she knew that he didn't have any excess fat on him. His recently fixed teeth brought his boyish and innocent facial features back. (The teeth were a result of a past summer's Quidditch accident that broke his jaw.)

She opened her books. She had to get him out of her head. He was a player. He was the kind of boy that she stayed away from. Besides, she already had a boyfriend and he had a girlfriend.

Besides, she loved Oliver.

Yep, the girl was enchanted by the boy.

Marcus opened the Slytherin Quidditch locker room door. He flipped on the lights and watched as they provided luminosity on the green and silver colours of the room, the walls were lined with past team pictures. He walked past the board were he went over plans before each game and practice. He strolled past the benches were the team "listened" to his lectures. He ambled past the lockers that contained items that he didn't want to know what they were. He pasted the little hall that lead to the showers. In the back on the room, he opened his office door and stepped inside.

His office was not much bigger than a broom closet. A desk took up most of the space. A small shower was in the eastern wall corner. A futon was on the western wall as well as another door that led outside. Another board covered in Quidditch plans covered the southern wall. Some of the plans were ten years old and rather mental. The remaining wall space was covered with more pictures and shelves that held trophies.

He pulled his duffle bag out from behind the desk. He opened it and pulled out a pair of shorts and T-shirt. He changed into them and grabbed his broom off the desk.

He needed to think.

Flying allowed him to feel free. It allowed him to concentrate on whatever was bothering him.

People always told him to talk to other people, but there wasn't really anyone. He had friends and was one of the most popular boys in the Slytherin House, but he didn't really want to talk to them. He was kind of a private person.

Like most Slytherins, he was form a wealthy pureblood family. He was the result of his mum and dad's second marriages. His dad had been married to some crazy Polish woman for five years and they had a daughter, Alice. Alice was thirteen years older than he was and he had only met her twice. His mother had been married to his dad's brother for eleven years. Then, he was murdered by the Death Eaters. (His uncle, mum, and dad were Aurors.) His mum and uncle had six sons: Brain, Luke and Logan (twins), Shawn and Nathanial (twins) and Ryan. They were anywhere from eleven to three years older than Marcus. Well, Marcus's mum and dad overtime fell in love and got married two years later. A year later that Marcus was born. Then, four and a half years later Marcus's sister, Haley, was born. Most of the time none of them was around. His parents both worked seven days a week and were only off for holidays. His half-brothers moved out right after Hogwarts and only came home maybe twice a year. He and Haley were close.

The family also moved around a lot. Marcus had lived in four different countries and two different contentions.

Anyway, this wasn't about his messed up family. It was about a girl.

Katie. Never in a million years would he had thought that he would be enchanted by little Katie Bell.

The question lingered. Did she feel the same way?


	2. Chapter 2: Charmed

Chapter Two: Charmed

Disclaimer: All characters belong to J.K. Rowling.

Author's Note: This fanfiction is going to be different from my other stories. This begins during Chamber of Secrets and goes up until three years after the Dark War. So, pay attention the time, so you don't get confused. Some of the chapters are other Marcus Flint/Katie Bell stories, just with more changes and deleted scenes added.

Time: Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets

Genre: Romance, Drama, and Friendship

Rating: PG-13

Katie flipped through her Charms book. He was still on her mind.

Katie was from a middle-class half-blood family. Both of her parents attended Hogwarts. Her mum was a pureblood witch and her dad a Muggle. Her mum's family didn't approve of the relationship. They had two children: Katie's older brother, Anthony and Katie. When she was five, her parents got a divorce. Shortly after the divorce, her mum remarried. She had one son, Seth. Three years after it, her dad remarried. He had two daughters: Sierra and Zoey. Katie lived with her stepmom, Jenna, and her dad. She didn't get along with her stepdad, Mike.

This wasn't about them. It was about him. She wasn't supposed to be enchanted by him.

The question lingered. Did he feel the same way?

The next morning, Marcus entered the Great Hall as normal. However, that morning wasn't normal. Word had gotten out that he was single. So far, today six different girls had asked him out. He was pretty sure a lot of it had to do with the fact that he was the Slytherin Quidditch Capitan. Yes, he made one cry. It was to his horror a tiny, first year.

He sat down next to the other sixth year boys and began to fill his plate. Next to him, Malfoy (who was only a second year, seemed to think he was all that, and someone who got on Marcus's nerves) was bragging about how he had just gotten his first girlfriend. Of course, he thought that everyone was listening and actually cared, when in first they wanted to curse him so that he would shut up.

Adrian Pucey saved them all. "So, Marcus, I noticed that Alyson McCann asked you out this morning?" Adrian smirked. "She's pretty hot.

Seventh year, Alyson McCann was the most popular girl in Slytherin and maybe even the whole school. Boys couldn't keep themselves off of her.

Marcus took a bit of toast. "So, what are you a stalker?"

"What'd you tell her?"

"No."

A look of shock came across his face. "What?"

Marcus reached for the harsh browns. "I told her no."

Adrian through his hands up in disbelief. "Are you crazy?"

"Actually, I think he is," Damon added.

"Leave him alone," Chris said. "If he told her no, then she's game for the rest of us."

Adrian buttered his toast. "Don't you have a girlfriend?"

"What she doesn't know won't hurt her."

Katie watched Marcus as he laughed with his friends. She wished that she could go over and laugh with them. He seemed more careful and "innocent." She really didn't believe the innocent part. Oliver was just too uptight. He took everything way to serious. It was almost like he didn't know how to have fun.

"Did you ever wonder what it would be like to be a Slytherin?" Katie asked Angelina Johnson.

Angelina snorted. "No."

"Why?"

"Because we're Gryffindors and they're Slytherin. The two just don't mix." Angelina took a bit of hotcake. "Besides, how can you possibly be enchanted by them?"

"Very easily," Katie thought.

"They're just a bunch of pigs," Angelina took a sip of orange juice. "Wait, men are pigs. I'll not sure what you would call someone who's Slytherin and a member of the male gender."

"Is there even a word for it?" Katie inquired.

Angelina chewed her lip. "I don't think so, but it's definitely not enchanted."

**Two Months Later**

Marcus had just gotten done with a rough practice and he was sore. Bole had hit him in the back of the head. It knocked him out for a few minutes. Even though he should have gone to the hospital wing, he hadn't yet. It was a place he tended to avoid.

Since he had to gather the balls up, he would be the last one in the locker room. If he took his time, then he would be the only one in there. He really didn't want to listen to the others complain about their problems. He already had a headache and really didn't want another one.

It took about twenty minutes to gather the balls. Slowly he walked toward the tunnel. His skull felt like it had been cracked in two. Instead of his head feeling light, it felt as if he weighed the amount of two bricks.

When he came out of the tunnel, he saw her. She was leaning against the exit like she had been waiting in him. Her smile revealed her prefect teeth. It was also the kind of smile that said she wanted something.

"Yes?" he asked.

She walked over to him. "You're hurt."

"What makes you say that?"

"Your pupils are dilated."

"And?"

"It would take something really big and/or hard to hurt you're thick head."

Marcus smiled. "Are you saying that it's my brain that's big?"

She was really close now. "No." He could see every individual lash. "I'm just saying you have a big head."

Wait! Marcus froze. This was sweet, innocent Katie Bell. He couldn't do anything to her. Yet, it seemed like she was hitting on him. This wasn't right, but, yet, it felt so right.

"If my head didn't hurt, I would feel insulted by that little remark."

She leaned in so that their foreheads were touching. "So, are you going to do anything about it?" she whispered.

"Yes," Marcus whispered back.

"What?"

"This."

"Stand here and talk to me."

No, I mean this."

And he kissed her.

The kiss was a shock, but she couldn't pull away. She was surprised that he had made the first move. She was surprised that he was kissing her.

She kissed him back and ran her figures through his hair. She was completely aware of the fact that at any given time anyone could see them. Yet, she didn't care. He was the only one she saw.

Marcus broke the kiss. "What about Wood?"

"We broke up."

He looked relieved. "Good, I didn't want him to kill me."

Katie laughed. "Kiss me."

And he did again.

Katie broke away from him. She could still feel his touch on her lips. He was so gentle, so good. He was everything that he ever wanted, everything that she ever wished for.

She gently touched the side of his face. "So?"

He looked away. "What was that for?"

"What was what?" For a minute she thought that he was talking about the kiss.

"The so?"

Yes! He wasn't talking about the kiss. "I have no idea."

He leaned against the wall. "I never realized how much you talked."

She laughed. "I normally don't."

"Then why me?"

"I have no idea."

"Just luck of the draw?"

"I guess."

"You'd better go get a shower."

"Why?"

"You're all sweaty."

"That didn't seem to bother you before."

After he had escaped the locker room, Marcus found her lurking in the library. He sat down next to her and pretended to study. He got several looks; he wasn't a regular.

She caught his eye.

He scribbled down a note.

Meet me in the third floor empty classroom.

He threw it at her.

It hit her on the shoulder. She opened it, read it, and smiled. He took it as a yes.

It looked like Hogwarts had a new it couple.

**Eighteen Months Later **

He felt the Bludger hit him in the back of the head. His world went black.

Katie sat next to him. His mum and dad were in a meeting with a Healer. It had been six weeks since the accident and he wasn't improving. For six, long weeks his eyes had stayed closed. She watched the steady movement of his chest. At least he could breath of his own.

She gripped his hand and kissed his forehead.

Outside she could hear Healers, patients, and family members roaming the halls. She wished that Marcus could join them, but he couldn't and he wouldn't for awhile. The Healers said it would be months before he returned to normal. (Not that he was before)

She stroked his hair. When she did this, he began to move.

"Hey," she whispered as he opened his eyes.

Marcus winced in pain. "Hey." He looked around. "Where am I?"

"London."

"Why?"

"You got hurt at practice."

He stared off in to space. "Where's my mum and dad?"

"With a Healer."

He was silent.

Katie bent down and kissed him. "It was enchanting to meet you."

Marcus kissed her back. "Have I charmed you?"  
>She ran her hand up his arm. "Yes, you have charmed me."<em><br>_


	3. Chapter 3: Say Okay

Chapter Three: Say Okay

Disclaimer: All characters belong to J.K. Rowling.

Author's Note: This fanfiction is going to be different from my other stories. This begins during Chamber of Secrets and goes up until three years after the Dark War. So, pay attention the time, so you don't get confused. Some of the chapters are other Marcus Flint/Katie Bell stories, just with more changes and deleted scenes added.

Time: Harry Potter and Prisoner of Azkaban

Genre: Romance, Drama, and Friendship

Rating: PG-13

**Bold: Flashback**

Marcus leaned back against his bed. It had been almost two months since the accident. Why did everything still hurt so bad?

He looked around the room. He didn't want to be here. He just wanted to go home and heal. He wanted it all to stop. He sighed. It didn't matter what he wanted. He wasn't going to get it anyway. Since the accident, none of this mattered to anyone.

Everyone was telling him to be a good boy and let the Healers do their job. He was supposed to hold still and let them pour strange and unknown potions into his body. He was supposed to take every medical test without crying out or moving no matter how bad they hurt. Just yesterday, his dad had had to hold him down and his mum had had to whisper motherly words to him as a Healer could put a six inch needle in his back to do God knows what.

It was just getting old.

He felt so weak for being like this, but he couldn't help it.

The only person who understood and at least tried to was Katie. He felt safe in her arms. He thought that he wasn't ready to get into another serious relationship, but she had proved him wrong. Sure, he was a little bit naive, but around her, there was sparks.

Around her, he found it hard to breath.

Two Days Later

Katie watched as Marcus slept. She wanted him to be okay. She longed to spend another day with him.

Like their midnight visits.

**Katie Bell pushed the castle door open. She looked behind her to make sure that no one was following her. She was not exactly breaking the rules. It was after all forty-five minutes before curfew. Sure, it was not exactly smart to be doing this, not with a mass murderer on the loose. She did not think that Black would come to Hogwarts anyway. **

** At least not tonight. **

** She walked down the stairs and turned toward the Quidditch pitch. He was supposed to be there. She was not sure if he would show up. Their meetings were kind of just random passing or a few stolen minutes when their friends' backs were turned. **

** She was not ashamed to be seen with him. It was not like that at all. They just wanted some privacy. They wanted to be away from the prying eyes of the world. **

** She entered the pitch and looked around. No sign of him. Katie sighed. She had hoped he would have made it tonight. Maybe he was having trouble escaping... **

** She did one more sweep of the pitch to make sure that she did not miss him. She did not want to leave if he was hiding in the shadows. It was part of the deal. If one of them was not there when the other arrived, they would leave and meet some other time. **

** Nevertheless, she had hoped he would here tonight. **

** That was what happened when you got your hopes up. They always seem to have a habit of being dashed. They always seem to leave one disappointed. **

** Katie turned to leave. Her long, blond hair shone in the moonlight. **

** "I'd try looking up, if I were you," a voice said from above. **

** Katie looked up. "Well, if you weren't so quite, I may have noticed you." **

** Marcus landed on the ground next to her. "I wasn't sure if you were a teacher or not." **

** Kate was confused. "Why?" **

** Marcus looked at his watch. "It is five minutes past curfew." **

** "Oh, it is not." Katie grabbed his arm and looked at his watch. Sure, enough it was. "Crap." **

** "Afraid of getting in trouble?" Marcus inquired. **

** Katie gave him a look. "Some of us would like to keep our record semi-clean." **

** Marcus leaned against his broom. "Oh, would they now?" **

** "Yes." **

** Marcus looked around. "There's no one here would like too."  
>Katie slapped him. <strong>

** "Oh, you mean you?" **

** "Yes." **

** "That's what you get for dating me." **

** Katie bit her lip. She had forgotten how reckless he could be. She had always known that he had trouble following the rules. She knew that he had another, more serious problems besides following the rules. He had assured her that he had gotten help and broke those habits. However, he was still reckless. She thought she could change that, but, now, she did not see how. **

** Foolish, foolish girl. **

** Marcus put his arm around her. "So..." **

** "So..." **

** Above them, a rumble of thunder crackled through the night as lightening filled the sky. The chill in the air singled that rain would soon follow. The gentle breeze made the Quidditch stands creek and the goal posts wave gently. Mother Nature was calling. **

** Marcus took Katie's arm and led her gently toward the Slytherin locker rooms. As he pulled the key out from underneath his shirt, rain had begun to fall. Marcus pushed the door open just as the downpour began. They both flung themselves in. **

** Once inside the locker room, lights lit the room up one by one. They provided luminosity on the green and silver colours of the room, the walls were lined with past team pictures. The room was a little more fancier than the Gryffindor locker room. Besides the lights, the fireplace in the corner (Gryffindor did not have of those!) sparked and warmed the room. Everything looked newer and it probably was. Katie watched in awe. She looked at Marcus, who shrugged. **

** "It's magic, Katie," Marcus said. **

** Katie gave him a dirty look. **

** Marcus sat down on one of the two benches in front of a large, white board. Unlike Oliver's boards, it was blank. She thought that he would worse than Oliver was. **

** "Um, yeah." He noticed that she was looking. He stood up and walked over to the board. He flipped it over and revealed plans. Then, flipped it back over to the blank side. "We had some problems with people breaking in here. We had to come up with something." **

** Katie did not add that she know who it was. She does not add that there was more than one person involved. **

** Marcus walked back over and sat down never to her. "So, is this the part where we make random small talk and/or make out?" **

** Katie nodded. "I think it is." She giggled. **

** Marcus banged his head against the wall. **

** Katie listened to the storm that was now in full rage. There was no hope of leaving now. She was stuck here with her lover. What did lovers do when they were alone together? **

** Oh, she knew. **

** But, they weren't going there. She wanted to save herself and had told him this. He did not take it like she thought he would. She thought that he would have broken up with her, but he kind of seemed relieved when she told him that. She knew what his last girlfriend wanted from him and that she had pressured him into it. Maybe that was why he looked relieved.**

** She reached over and kissed him. "I love you." **

** "Love you too," he said as he kissed her back. **

** Just as the storm was cleaning the earth, Katie Bell was cleaning up Marcus Flint's soul. All of them were becoming one. **

** All were coming clean. **

Katie sighed. She wondered if they would ever go back to days like that.

She stroked Marcus's hair off his forehead. The movement was enough to wake him. "Hey," she said to him.

"Hey, yourself," he said as he sat up. "Why didn't you wake me?"

"I didn't have the heart too."

Marcus looked at her.

She kissed his forehead. "You looked to peaceful to wake."

"So, you're saying that you're a softy?"

"I'm saying that I have a heart."

"Do I have heart?"

Katie looked at him. "Yes. Why?"

He leaned back against the pillows. "Because if this was you, I would have woke you up."

"Seriously?"

Marcus nodded. "Yep, I wouldn't give my weekend up to watch you sleep."

Katie looked offended. "Well, I'll just go then."

He grabbed her to keep her from going. "I was just kidding."

"Loser."

"You wouldn't love me if I changed."

Katie glared at him. No, she wouldn't.

When it wasn't alright, she would hold him.

When it wasn't okay, she would confront him.

When it wasn't okay, she would say that is wasn't okay.

But when he got back on his feet, the honeymoon would be over.


	4. Chapter 4: An Exchange of Words

Chapter Four: An Exchange of Words

Disclaimer: All characters belong to J.K. Rowling.

Author's Note: This fanfiction is going to be different from my other stories. This begins during Chamber of Secrets and goes up until three years after the Dark War. So, pay attention the time, so you don't get confused. Some of the chapters are other Marcus Flint/Katie Bell stories, just with more changes and deleted scenes added.

Time: Harry Potter and Prisoner of Azkaban

Genre: Romance, Drama, and Friendship

Rating: PG-13

**Three Months Later: The Quidditch Final**

Marcus waited in the tunnel with the rest of the team. He still didn't feel all that great, but he felt better than he did before. He hadn't wanted to play in this game, but his friends had talked him into it.

He looked down at his green and silver uniform. This would be the last time he was play in these colours. It was kind of depressing, but at least he would be out of this place.

Before the accident, the Falmouth Falcons had been scouting him and talking about recruiting him. Now, he didn't know what his future was in Quidditch. He sighed. Until now he hadn't thought about being a professional Quidditch player.

It was never a goal to become a professional Quidditch player. He wanted to study Magical Creatures. He was always a fan of animals. He owned four horses, two dogs, a rabbit, and a large saltwater fish tank. During the summer, he played on a local Quidditch team, but also did barrel horse racing and other types on horse shows. He was nationally ranked and had won many local and regional titles.

Still every time he fell of the horse, it still hurt...

He's a classically trained piano player. He began taking piano lessons at the age of four. At the age of five, he begged his parents to let him take guitar lessons along with his piano training. They agreed to it. He never openly said that he could play the piano, but didn't care if people knew that he played the guitar. It was a lot safer, but not as exciting.

He motioned for his team to follow him out of the tunnel. Now this was exhilarating. He was going to get to annoy Oliver Wood. Wood had no idea that he was back. The only Gryffindor who did was Katie. He actually got back Thursday evening after supper. He did go to classes yesterday, but had been with the Ravenclaws all day.

Oh, joy, joy, joy...

Actually, it was a happy occasion. Any day to annoy Wood was a happy day.

Yep, he was mean person.

Did he care?  
>Nope.<p>

He watched Wood's stunned face as he lead his team across the pitch. He watched as the face went from stunned, to angry, to shocked, back to angry, and repeat. Marcus raised an eyebrow at him.

"Captains shake hands," Madam Pooch commanded once they reached the centre of the field.

Wood gripped Marcus's hand with all of his might. He was trying to break Marcus's fingers. Marcus didn't wince. He applied just as much pressure if not more.

"What are you doing here?" Wood said in undertone. He didn't want Madam Pooch to hear.

"Why, playing Quidditch," Marcus said. "What else would I be doing on the pitch?"

Wood glared at him.

"And beating you," Marcus hissed.

"You've got two injured players. Didn't Montague take a Bludger to the head last weekend? I know for a fact that you're not back one hundred percent. Pucey's out because of injury, so you've got a reserve. Hum, I think the tides are against you," Wood said with a smirk.

"I wasn't referring to that. I was referring to the fact, that I'm not the one who hurt Katie." With that, he released Wood's hand.

_**Okay, I was going to put the game in this chapter, but decided to leave it until the next one. I wanted to get a little of Marcus's and Wood's **__**rivalry **__**in here. **_


	5. Chapter 5: The Quidditch Final

Chapter Five: The Quidditch Final

Disclaimer: All characters belong to J.K. Rowling.

Author's Note: This fanfiction is going to be different from my other stories. This begins during Chamber of Secrets and goes up until three years after the Dark War. So, pay attention the time, so you don't get confused. Some of the chapters are other Marcus Flint/Katie Bell stories, just with more changes and deleted scenes added.

Time: Harry Potter and Prisoner of Azkaban

Genre: Romance, Drama, and Friendship

Rating: PG-13

Marcus kicked off, leaving a stunned Wood on the ground. When he looked back, he saw that the other boy had already taken his position in the goal posts.

He got thinking that it probably hadn't been a good idea to tick the Gryffindor captain off. Of well, Wood was just going to have to deal with it.

Marcus went into Chaser mode and rushed off as Angelina Johnson soared toward the goal posts. He hoped that Bletchley had not been out all night with his girlfriend like he was known to do. He did not think that the Keeper had, but he wasn't one hundred percent sure.

Bletchley dived.

And missed...

Marcus took his eyes off the game and caught Katie's eye.

She smiled at him. "You okay?" she mouthed.

He was about ready to nod when he felt a crash. He looked and saw Angelina glaring at him. "Sorry."

Angelina glared at him, then at Katie. "Honestly, can't you two give it a rest?"

Marcus did not answer. He knew that Angelina did not approve of him and Katie being together. He was thinking of some comment to get back at her with.

_SMACK! _

He was flung forward and his nose hit the broom. He began to bleed. Pain erupted across the front of his face.

Madam Hooch was next to him in an instant and blew the whistle right in his ear. "Gryffindor penalty for an unprovoked attack on a Chaser! Slytherin penalty for deliberate damage to a Chaser!"

Fred Weasley, who was behind Marcus, was cursing widely.

Marcus turned to watch Alicia, whose name he knew from Katie, fly forward to take the Gryffindor shot. He saw her raise her arm...

And the Quaffle went right through the goal.

Bletchley had missed in by a mile.

"YES SHE'S BEATEN THE KEEPER!" Jordon bellowed.

Marcus wished that they would find someone who always did not favour Gryffindor. Jordon's commentary was annoying. He was even more annoying today than any other day for some reason. Marcus figured it that it had something to do with the fact that his pain relieving Potions were wearing off and Weasley's attack that was making his head.

In fact, he wished that Potter would just hurry up and catch the Snitch. He knew that Malfoy had no chances at all of catching it. He was too annoying and more interested in bugging Potter. Marcus sighed. He really did not know why he put Malfoy on the team in the first place. It was not the brooms. After Higgs had go hurt during summer league, the team needed a replacement and they needed it fast.

And Malfoy was the only one interested...

Marcus had tried to get his sister, Haley, to take it, but she would not. She usually played Chaser. However, when he had got hurt, she took his spot.

He snapped out of his daze. He needed to focus.

Focus!

Madam Hooch threw him the Quaffle. He caught it with ease and flew toward the goal posts. Wood was giving him dirty looks. He ignored them and concentrated on the shot. He knew that the odds of him making it were slim to none, but that did not mean that he was going to give Wood an easy shot. He raised his throwing arm, which happened to be his left arm, and faked a left shot then ended up throwing right. Wood saw what he was going to do and catch it. Wood made the catch look easy, but Marcus knew that he had struggled with the save. He knew Wood's moves. They had played both together and against each other for fourteen long years.

"YES, I DON'T BELIEVE IT, HE'S SAVE IT!" Jordon was now yelling. He sounded shocked.

"_Yes, that's right Jordon," Marcus thought. "You sound like you were worried that he wouldn't. Don't place much trust in Wood, huh? Don't trust your own team?" _

Slytherin was down by ten points. It was no big deal, but like other Quidditch players, Marcus knew that the first team to score was usually the ones who won. It always did not happen, but for the most part, it did.

Katie took position of the Quaffle. Marcus moved to follow her. He was almost in reach to steal it from her, when Montague came into his sights. Marcus backed off and was going to let the other boy have the steal. Much to Marcus's horror, instead of going for the Quaffle, he went for Katie's head. She managed to stay on her broom, barely, but dropped the Quaffle.

And, for once, Marcus did not have the heart or desire to go get it.

He heard Madam Hooch's whistle as Gryffindor was given another free shot at the Slytherin goal posts. Besides, that he could hear Jordon cursing over the crowd.

Naturally, Katie made the shot.

Above him, Bole and Chris were cornering Potter. Good, that would slow the Seeker down a little. However, much to Marcus's surprise, Potter flew upwards and the two Beaters hit each other with a sickening crunch.

Now, Johnson had the Quaffle again. Marcus took off after her. Unlike with Katie, he was not in a romantic relationship with her and, therefore, had no problems whatsoever with knocking her around. He was alongside up her. He could here Jordon advising her to "poke him the eye." Now that really ticked Marcus off, he stole the Quaffle from her and soared toward the Gryffindor goal post.

Wood was waiting.

Marcus raised his arm.

Wood tensed.

Marcus released.

Wood dived.

And the Quaffle slipped from his fingers.

SCORE!

Ten points for Slytherin!

Behind him, Jordon was swearing again. Marcus never knew that Gryffindors could cuss like that. He thought that it only and always happened in Slytherin. Huh, guess you really do learn something new every day. He looked down as he flew the other way, to see that McGonagall had taken the megaphone away from Jordon, who was apologizing like crazy to her.

The game was getting dirty. Both teams were fouling left and right. People were hitting each other and cheating in any way that they could think of. If this kept up, all of the seven hundred possible Quidditch fouls would be witnessed in this game.

The whistle blew again.

Marcus looked around. From what he had seen, no one had done anything that would give reason for a foul. "Now what?" he asked sharply to Johnson. Johnson was the closest player to him.

"Malfoy," she said.

Marcus rolled his eyes and swore. Of course, the Seeker just could not do his job! No, no he had to provoke Potter somehow.

"Now, don't let McGonagall hear you or she'll take your megaphone away," Johnson said as she flew away.

Marcus hovered where he was. Huh, who knew that the girl had a sense of humour. If this learning thing kept up...He did not know what would happen.

Gryffindor gained ten more points because of Malfoy's little move.

However, it did tick the Gryffindors off and made them lose their concentration. Montague scored. Marcus knew that it would not be enough. He knew that they were going to lose.

The team got together and began to surge toward Johnson who was going to score again. Potter must had seen this because he came flying toward them forcing them to scatter. Johnson scored again.

The next thing Marcus knew the game was over. The only thing he could come up with was that Potter had caught the Snitch right after he scattered the Slytherin team.

Marcus landed and walked toward the tunnel behind the rest of the team. Behind him, he could hear the Gryffindors celebrating. Oddly enough, he did not care. All he wanted was some pain reliever potion.

He was in the tunnels when someone grabbed him. "Marcus Flint?" a bald headed man asked him.

Marcus nodded. "Can I help you?"

"No, but I think you can help me," the man said smiling.

Marcus gave him a confused look.

"I'm Coach David Holder of the Falmouth Falcons. We was wondering if you would be interested in playing for us?"

Marcus stepped back stunned. The Falcons had been sending him letters offering him a spot, but since the accident, he thought that his chances with them were gone. "I don' t understand."

Holder shook his head. "Gesh, have you really taken that many Bludgers to the head, boy? I'm offering you a job. We need you to finish out the season for us."

Marcus took a deep breath. He knew that the reserve Centre Chaser had been bumped up to first sting when the first sting Chaser retired. "When do I start?"

Holder's smile widened. "Second week in June."


	6. Chapter 6: Secrets

Chapter Six: Secrets

Disclaimer: All characters belong to J.K. Rowling.

Author's Note: This fanfiction is going to be different from my other stories. This begins during Chamber of Secrets and goes up until three years after the Dark War. So, pay attention the time, so you don't get confused. Some of the chapters are other Marcus Flint/Katie Bell stories, just with more changes and deleted scenes added.

Time: Harry Potter and Prisoner of Azkaban

Genre: Romance, Drama, and Friendship

Rating: PG-13

Marcus caught up with Chris. He was still bleeding freely and his once green robes were stroked in a brilliant coat of red wine coloured blood.

Chris turned and raised an eyebrow. "I thought you'd passed out somewhere."

Marcus shook his head. "Was you hoping that I have?"

Chris sighed dramatically and shot his best friend a playful smile. "Maybe, maybe not."

Marcus rolled his eyes and walked away.

Chris ran too caught up with him. "Seriously you do look kind of pale."

"You kidding. I've been bleeding for half an hour."

Chris grabs Marcus by his left arm. "That's not normal."

Marcus didn't respond.

"What really happened to you?"

"I got hurt what else."

"How bad are you really hurt?"

Marcus looked toward the ground. "To be honest, I don't know."

"Why?"

"It's like some big secret and everyone knows but me."

"Haven't you asked?"

Marcus rounded on Chris. "Do you really think I was lying there letting them to me whatever they wanted to without asking?"

Chris shook his head. "Surely, you overheard some of their conversations..."

"Nope, those were held in hidden offices where I couldn't hear. If they were held my room after they had knocked me out."

Chris winced. He knew that normally Marcus's parents were pretty good about telling him stuff, especially if Marcus was involved. He looked at his best friend who now had Madam Pomfrey fussing over him. The way that his friend was acting made Chris wonder if Marcus really did know what was going on. If he did, it made him wonder why he was getting it a secret.

Maybe he wasn't ready for the truth to become knowledge.

Maybe it was better and easier for him to keep it a secret.

_**Author's Note: Okay, this was a really short, filler chapter from Derrick's POV. Marcus does have permanent damage for the accident, more about that in later chapters. Next chapters will be easing in Goblet of Fire. **_


	7. Chapter 7: Unbroken Ties

Chapter Seven: Unbroken Ties

Disclaimer: All characters belong to J.K. Rowling.

Author's Note: This fanfiction is going to be different from my other stories. This begins during Chamber of Secrets and goes up until three years after the Dark War. So, pay attention the time, so you don't get confused. Some of the chapters are other Marcus Flint/Katie Bell stories, just with more changes and deleted scenes added.

Time: Harry Potter and Goblet of Fire

Genre: Romance, Drama, and Friendship

Rating: PG-13

This is a filler chapter to provide comic relief.

**June**

Katie leaned against Marcus. He had grown more muscular since he had started training with the Falmouth Falcons. Secretly she was glad to see that he had put some of his weight back on. The accident had caused him to lose almost thirty pounds. She did not really like sickly looking Marcus. She sighed.

"What?" Marcus asked.

Katie kissed him. He had just shaved so his face smooth. "You should shave everyone few hours," she said as she breathed in his aftershave.

"Why?"

"Because your face is smooth when you do."

"I hate shaving. This is the first time I've shaved in two days."

"I know."

"Then, why do I have to do it?"

Katie buries her face in his chest. "Because if you don't, you look like a hairy caveman?" She looks up at him and grins.

Marcus raises an eyebrow. "A hairy caveman, huh?"

"Yes."

"Is that an insult?"

Katie looked him in the eye. "Why, yes it is, Marcus Nathaniel Flint."

Marcus stood up and she fell from his lap. "So, now you are insulting me?"

"Yes, you're feeling better now."

Marcus smiled weakly. "As long as stay on my Potions, I don't hurt as bad."

"And if you don't?"

"It's not as bad as it was before."

Katie nodded. "That's good."

Marcus looked around his new house. It was not new, but new to him. It had belonged to his mum's parents, but they gave it him when they found out that he was moving to the South. The house was not in Falmouth, but an hour north in a small town called Hundred Valley. He liked it here. It was not too far from the pitch, but it was far enough to get away from it all.

"Yeah, but it's still a pain."

Katie wrapped her arms around him. "It just takes time."

Marcus stared out into space. "Yeah, but how much time?"

Katie wished she had an answer to his question.

Marcus paced across the room. "Everyone tells me to take it easy and to be patient. How long am supposed to do this?"

"Until you stop looking pale after taking care of your horses," Katie quickly said.

Marcus stopped pacing. "I don't look pale."

"Yes, you do."

"I'm just tried."

"That's my point. Don't overdo it; you'll end up hurting yourself again."

Marcus rolled his eyes. "Now, you sound just like everyone else."

Katie took a deep breath. "Well, just like everyone else, I am worried about you."

Marcus did not mean to come across as hot tempered, but everyone telling him what and what not to do was getting old. He wished that they would just leave him alone and treat as they did before he got hurt. It really bothered him. He did not want to be treated as someone who was fragile like elders. He wanted to be treated like Marcus.

"Penny for your thoughts?" Katie whispered.

"I'm hungry."

Katie let out a snort. "You're hungry?"

Marcus looked her in the eye. "Well, yeah."

"Seriously?"  
>"I am dead serious."<p>

"Why?"

"Because I am."

"Why?"

"Because I did not eat lunch."

Katie took his hand. "Well, let's feed you."

They went downstairs to the kitchen. Marcus had a lot of bulk and frozen food. He was not one to cook. Katie knew that he could cook, but it was mostly Italian. It was good, but she was not in the mood for Italian. They made pasta one night and Katie had been asking him how to say things in Italian. Marcus was born in Ireland, but moved to Italy at the age of five. Finally when he was ten, his family moved to northern England.

She began to open every drawer and cabinet hunting for something to eat. Nothing, nothing, nothing. He had nothing to eat. "Er, Marcus?"

Marcus was leaning against the land. He was sorting through his mail. "Yes?"

"Don't you have anything to eat in this house?"

Marcus walked over to the main part of the kitchen and reached into the pantry. He pulled out two cans of chicken soup. "Will this work?"

Katie looked at him. "Where did you have those stashed?" She had looked in the pantry, but did not see anything.

"You've got to look up," Marcus said. "Not all of us are short."

"It's not my fault, you're freakishly tall."

"It's not my fault, you're so short."

Katie stomped on his foot. He just had socks on, so her boots with a little heal hurt him. She grinned as he winced.

"That's cheating."

"It's also cheating if you hide food from your girlfriend."

"Explain to me how that is cheating."

"It just is."

Katie grabbed a pot from under the sink and filled it with water. She walked across the room, set it on the stove, and turned the stove in. After the water had boiled, she added the soup.

"I could have done that, you know," Marcus said. He came up behind her and rested his chin on her shoulder.

"I know."

"Why didn't you let me?"

"Because I don't feel like having food poisoning tonight."

"What do you feel like doing tonight?"

Katie dumped the soup into two bowls and handed him one. "What's that supposed to mean?"

Marcus took a bit of the soup and shrugged.

"You know my parents would never let me."

"Who says they have to know?"

Katie bit her lip. She did want to stay with him. "Leanne will cover for me."

"Are you sure?" Marcus asked. He did not want to get her in trouble, but he did want her to stay.

"Yes, I will stay."


	8. Chapter 8: Blow Me Away

Chapter Eight: Blow Me Away

Disclaimer: All characters belong to J.K. Rowling.

Author's Note: This fanfiction is going to be different from my other stories. This begins during Chamber of Secrets and goes up until three years after the Dark War. So, pay attention the time, so you don't get confused. Some of the chapters are other Marcus Flint/Katie Bell stories, just with more changes and deleted scenes added. Okay, I make the American Final an event where teams from all different complete with their regular league team, then after that the national team in formed.

**Bold: Flashback**

Time: Harry Potter and Goblet of Fire

Genre: Romance, Drama, and Friendship

Rating: PG-13

The American Final: Hawaii, July

Marcus threw his bag down on the hotel bed. He was glad that they didn't have to stay in a tent like a lot of people. He heard a soft knock on the door. "Come in."

His thirteen-year-old sister, Haley entered. "Hey." She sat down on the bed.

Marcus and Haley looked very much alike. Both were tall and slim, but strong from years of playing Quidditch. They had the same dark hair that got wavy when it was long. They had the same chocolate, brown hair and a fair complexion.

Marcus looked at her. "Who said you could sit on my bed?" he asked in a mocking voice.

Haley looked innocently at him. "I did."

Marcus reached over to his duffle bag. "Well, I'm going to change."

Haley crossed her legs and stared at him. "So, I've seen you in your boxers before."

Marcus nodded. "True."

Haley pulled his schedule off the nightstand and looked at it. "You don't play until four." She looked at his watch which was lying on the bed. "And it's only noon."

"Um, going over the game plan. People do tend to do that."

Haley blinked and looked at the schedule. "No, you just want to make out with Katie."

Marcus pulled his shirt off and threw it on the ground. "No."

"So, you don't want to kiss Katie?"

"I never said that."

Haley watched him as he pulled his wife beater over his head. "Well, she is better than Avril."

Marcus does not respond.

"Come on, we all know what she wanted you for."

Marcus turned to his sister. "How do you know about that?"  
>Haley smiled. "I just know."<p>

"You haven't?"

Haley made a face. "Of course not."

Marcus rolled his eyes.

Haley's eyes light up. "I know why you want to go!"

"Why?"

"You're stomach's calling."

No answer.

"You're losing sight of your reasons. Steady your hand and fall in line."

Marcus does not understand.

"Just focus on the task."

Marcus nodded. "Gotta ya'."

He headed toward the door and was almost there when Haley called for him.

"Marcus?"

He stopped and turned. "Yeah?"

"Try not to get hurt again." She looked concerned.

"I'm not going to get hurt."

She looked at him with pleading eyes. "Promise?"

"I promise."

He left the room.

"If you touch her, I'll kill you," Oliver hissed to Flint one Tuesday afternoon in Charms class.

**Marcus looked innocently at the front of the room. "I don't know what you're talking about." **

** "Katie." **

** "Katie who?" **

** Wood fought the urge to hit the other boy. "Don't play dumb. I know that's hard for you." **

** Marcus turned and looked at Wood. "You never did answer my question." **

** "Katie Bell." **

** "The little blond Chaser?" **

** "Yes." **

** Marcus looked away. "It's none of your business who I flirt with." **

** Wood came up out of his seat. He reached inside his robes for his wand. This time he was going to do more damage than the punch did. **

** "I wouldn't do that if I was you." Wood glared at Marcus, who had his wand pointed at him. "You know you can't beat me." **

** Wood looked at the ancient clock. There was enough time for one smart comment. "Besides, everyone knows you're such a flirt anyway. You never commit to one girl." **

** Wood rushed out the door before Marcus could curse him.**

In all of the talks that Marcus and Katie had, he had forgotten to mention that little part. He thought that she didn't need to know the heart of everything. Although, he didn't get with Katie to make Wood jealous. It was just one of those things that happened.

He was in the lobby now. To his left, two people were whispering. They looked familiar, so he just assumed that they were wizards.

"It's getting stronger," one hissed.

The other rolled his eyes. "If you want to run, do it. I'm staying. Only the strongest will survive and lead. The weak will run and hide while the strong save them all."

"The wind will blow me away then."

"It most certainly will."

Marcus walked away. He played no mind to the words. After all, Haley was right about something. He was going to meet Katie.

_**Updates are going to be slow...So be patient. This chapter will have meaning in later chapters.**_


	9. Chapter 9: Into the Rush

Chapter Nine: Into the Rush

Disclaimer: All characters belong to J.K. Rowling.

Author's Note: This fanfiction is going to be different from my other stories. This begins during Chamber of Secrets and goes up until three years after the Dark War. So, pay attention the time, so you don't get confused. Some of the chapters are other Marcus Flint/Katie Bell stories, just with more changes and deleted scenes added. Okay, I make the American Final an event where teams from all different complete with their regular league team, then after that the national team in formed.

Time: Harry Potter and Goblet of Fire

Genre: Romance, Drama, and Friendship

**June, The American Final, Hawaii **

Marcus rounded the corner of the entrance of the hotel. Katie was supposed to be there. Although they were staying in the hotel, the deal was that she had to stay in a room with Haley: two floors away from him. It was the only way that Katie's parents let her come.

He looked around. She was not there yet. He sat down on a hard hotel chair. He did not understand how these were supposed to make someone feel at home. They just made him feel more out of place. He did not have to stay there for long.

Katie entered in a graceful way. Marcus did not see a tomboy, he saw Aphrodite. Her blond hair was pulled back into a ponytail and she was wearing athletic clothing. To him, she looked like she was dressed to the nines. She could be wearing a brown paper bag and he would not care.

She smiled when she saw him. "Hey." She bent down to kiss him and breathed in his aftershave.

"Hey, yourself," he said once the kiss broke.

She pulled him to his feet and led him outside. Once outside she turned to him. "You look good."

He smiled. "Of course I do."

"You know what I'm talking about."

"Prendere in giro me ristabilo e ho lasciato."

Katie looked at him. "Don't speak Italian."

"Why not?"

"I can't understand you."

Marcus smiled. "That's the point."

"Uh-huh." She rolled her eyes at him.

He smiled wider.

She pulled away from him. "Hey, don't kill yourself today."

Marcus put his hands in his pockets. "Okay, I'll try not to. I'll guess I'll have to do it tomorrow."

Katie hit his bicep. "I mean it."

"I meant what I said too."

"You did not!"

He walked away laughing. "I was just kidding, Katie."

Katie rolled her eyes at his retreating back. "If you keep this up, your wish just might come true!"  
>Marcus stopped and came back to her. "I'm not doing anything."<p>

Katie raised an eyebrow at him.

"Well, I'm not."

Katie crossed her arms over her chest and shook her head. "Someone's feeling better."

Marcus began to walk away from her again. "You know it."

"Where are you going?" Katie called.

"I have a game."

"Oh."

"Are you coming?"

"Do I have to?"

Marcus stopped walking. "Do you want me to answer that?"

"Nope."

"Good, cause I wasn't going to anyway."

Katie shook her head and headed up to her room. Sometimes she just did not know about him nor did she want to know.

~***~  
><strong>Falmouth Falcons (England) vs. Berlin Wolves (Germany), American Final<strong>

Trent Hastings, Beater for the Falcons, stood in front of his team. (He was also captain.) "Now, if we lose this one, we go home."

"We also lose to your homeland," Kevin Blair, the other Beater, said with a thick Finnish accent.

"That too."

Marcus exchanged looks with Jamie Taubenfeld, the left Chaser who was from Canada. He was a year older than Marcus. Both had the same built, expect Jamie had blond hair and blue eyes.

The line-up for the Falcons consisted of a number of nationalities. Trent Hastings, twenty-six, was a large Beater from southern Germany. Kevin Blair, twenty, was a medium built Beater from eastern Finland. Jamie Taubenfeld, nineteen, was a medium built left Chaser from western Canada; he was also dating the Seeker. Carter Collins, twenty-three, was a small right Chaser from South Africa. Shane Chang, twenty-five, was the Keeper from South Korea. Raine Daniels, eighteen, was the only female on the team and was Seeker from eastern Russia. She and Marcus had been sighed together.

Hastings stood up and led the charge out of the locker room.

Hastings and the German captain shook hands. Marcus did not know his name nor did he really care what it was. The referee told the teams to mount their brooms. Once they was in the air, the Quaffle was released and the game began.

The Falcons took position of the Quaffle. Marcus went into Chaser mode and rushed off as Carter soared toward the goal posts. The German Keeper flew out to meet him. Carter looked completey in focus and the German Keeper looked a little unsure of what to expect.

Carter raised his arm and released the Quaffle.

The German Keeper dived.

And missed...

The crowd roared as Carter did a victory lap.

_SMACK! _

Carter was flung forward and his nose hit the broom. He began to bleed. Behind him a German Beater was glaring at him. Marcus heard Carter swear.

The referee was next to him in an instant and blew the whistle right in his ear. "Falcon penalty for an unprovoked attack on a Chaser!"

Below, the Germans were booing.

Hastings flew in and stopped next to Marcus. "You're taking that shot!"  
>Marcus gave Hastings at startled look. "What?"<p>

"JUST DO IT!"

Marcus watched Hastings fly away. WHAT? When he woke up today, he did believe that he would be expected to take penalty shots. He was just going to mind his own business and let the others do the shots. They had more experience at this level than he did.

He snapped out of his daze. He needed to focus.

Focus!

The referee threw him the Quaffle. He took a deep breath. This was it. He caught it with ease and flew toward the goal posts. The German Keeper was giving him dirty looks. It was more intimidating than the ones he was used to. Maybe this was because the Keeper was at least twice the size of Marcus. However, he sucked it up. He ignored them and concentrated on the shot. He knew that the odds of him making it were slim to none, but that did not mean that he was going to give the Keeper an easy shot. He raised his throwing arm, which happened to be his left arm, and faked a left shot then ended up throwing right.

And the Quaffle went right through the goal.

The Falcons were up twenty.

Germany took position of the Quaffle. The German Chaser soared across the pitch.

Marcus winced he knew what was going to happen.

The German raised his arm. Shane was waiting. The German faked the shot and passed it to his teammate. Shane had not been expecting this and had already dived. The Germans scored.

Now, Jamie had the Quaffle. Marcus took off after him. About halfway across the pitch Marcus went left. He looked over and saw the Carter was to the right of Jamie. Jamie passed the Quaffle to Marcus. Marcus held on to it until they was right in front of the goal posts. Marcus, then, passed it to Carter. Carter raced the rest of the way toward the goal posts.

The German Keeper was waiting.

Carter raised his arm.

The German Keeper tensed.

Carter released.

The German Keeper dived.

And the Quaffle slipped from his fingers.

SCORE!

The Falcons were up by thirty!

The game was getting dirty. Both teams were fouling left and right. People were hitting each other and cheating in any way that they could think of. If this kept up, all of the seven hundred possible Quidditch fouls would be witnessed in this game. This game was reminding Marcus of his last game at Hogwarts. Only this time, he was on the winning team.

The whistle blew again. Hastings had paid the Germans back for hurting Carter.

Germany gained ten more points because of this.

However, it did tick the Germans off and made them lose their concentration. Jamie scored. Marcus knew that the Germans were beat.

And so did the Germans.

The Germanys got together and began to surge toward Jamie who was going to score again. Hastings quickly saw what was happening and came flying toward them forcing them to scatter. The Germans scattered. This allowed a clear shot for Jamie who made it without a problem.

He looked below him and saw the Seekers rushing toward the Snitch. He saw both Seekers reach and a roar followed. He could not tell who had it.

"FALCONS WIN!" the referee screamed.

Marcus joined his team in a victory lap above the roaring fans. The rush was unbelievable and for the first time in months he felt like his old self. He could feel the rush take over. It felt great to be alive! He soared into the rush...

_**So, don't expect any more Quidditch games for awhile. They take forever to write. Next chapter will be up ASPAP, which might be as soon as next week, to next month.**_


	10. Chapter 10:Complicated

Chapter Ten: Complicated

Disclaimer: All characters belong to J.K. Rowling.

Author's Note: This fanfiction is going to be different from my other stories. This begins during Chamber of Secrets and goes up until three years after the Dark War. So, pay attention the time, so you don't get confused. Some of the chapters are other Marcus Flint/Katie Bell stories, just with more changes and deleted scenes added.

**Bold: Flashback**

Time: Harry Potter and Goblet of Fire

Genre: Romance, Drama, and Friendship

**The Quidditch World Cup**

Marcus lay back against his bed with a sigh. He was not at home, as if he wished he were. Instead, he was in a tent at the Quidditch World Cup. He had not been home since he graduated from Hogwarts, almost three months ago. Quidditch life might sound wonderful to dreamers, but in reality, it was not. It was nonstop travelling, nonstop meetings, and nonstop press. It was annoying. He had to have bodyguard (an Auror) trail him at events like this. Luckily, his bodyguard was Kingsley Shacklebolt, who happened to be a friend of his dad's. Kingsley had also been one been one of his dad's students during Auror school.

The door to his tent was pulled back. "Hey," Brad Flint said as he stuck his head in. "How's it going?"

Marcus sat up. "Fine, I guess."

Brad came in and sat down on the edge of his son's bed. "Just fine?"

Marcus shrugged. "It's all I could think of."

"I see."

Marcus looked away from his father. "I need more comebacks."

Brad laughed. "I can see that."

"Damn, I need more."

Brad rolled his eyes. "That was better that time."

"I can use a more colourful vocabulary."

"I'm sure you can, but that's not here."

Marcus stared at his dad. "What are you talking about?"

Brad looked away from his son. "I suck at Muggle clichés."

"I can see that."

Brad hits Marcus playfully. "You didn't have to agree."

Marcus shrugged.

"Are you coming home after the Cup is over or are you going to your back?"

Marcus had a house about an hour north of Falmouth. His parents lived in northern England. He had been staying at his place instead of travelling back and forth all the time. It was easier. He really had not been there either since the start of summer. "Probably come to your house for awhile."

Brad stood up. "Good, I'll line up some projects." Brad owned a rather large farm and maintained it on top of being an Auror. The only way he kept up with it was through hired help. Currently Haley was the only one of his children still living at home.

"Great," Marcus said with a hint of sarcasm.

"I'd knew you'd feel that way," Brad said as he departed from the tent.

Marcus lay back down and closed his eyes. Soon he was asleep.

**Third year Katie Bell rolled her eyes at the stupidness of her fellow classmates. Most of these students were older than her, but acted like two year olds. She had been placed in a sixth year Muggle Studies class, because she was a half-blood. The only reason she was in this class was, because she had missed too much school. It was either take Muggle Studies or repeat her second year. Most of her classmates were here, because they wanted an easy class to take. **

** She looked down at her old Muggle clothes: blue jeans and a red sweater. She did have to admit that she looked better than some of her classmates. These pureblood wizards didn't know how to dress like a Muggle. **

** She watched as her desk mate slide into his seat next to her. He was like her, taking this class because he had missed too much school. She studied him. He was wearing a pair of Levi's black jeans and a black button down long shelve shirt. On his feet, he wore a black on black boots. Katie figured that they were dragon hid. His dark hair was getting long and was starting to get a hint of a natural wave. **

** "You ready for this?" she asked him. **

** Marcus Flint rolled his eyes. "Yeah, sure." **

** It was time for the Muggle Studies field trip. **

Katie wondered through the campsite. There was so many people there of different nationalities and speaking different tongues. She thought that it was all wonderful. She enjoyed going among the people. Most of the time, Marcus did not go with her. She knew that he hated being hounded by the press and avoided it at all costs. She did not blame him for hiding.

"Hey, Katie!" someone called from one of the tents.

Katie turned, her blond hair flowed out like the limbs of a tree. Oliver Wood was smiling at her. "Hey, Oliver."

Wood walked over to her. "How's it going?"

Katie looked at him. "Good, I've been with Marcus for a large part of the summer."

Wood winced. "Why are you with him, Katie? You could do so much better!"  
>Katie sighed. She was sick of them hating on each other. "He's a good guy once you get to know him!"<br>"And you think you know him!" Wood exclaimed.

"Yes, I do Oliver!"

"I've known him for twelve years, Katie, and the entire time he's been nothing, but a thickhead!"

Wood glared at her. "It's not you I can't stand, it's him."

Katie looked at him. "Why do you two hate each other so much away?"

Wood does not look her in the eye. "It's complicated."

"There is nothing complicated about it."

Wood started to walk away. "Everything is complicated about it."

Katie does not respond and stormed off. She knew that there was nothing complicated about hating someone. Nothing complicated about it at all...

She stormed back to the tent, unaware that Marcus was asleep. She pulled back the flap in anger and went into Marcus's bed. He was on his side with his back toward her. She was thinking that he was ignoring her or something, so she kicked him.

Marcus woke with a jerk and cursed. "I was asleep!" he exclaimed. He had not turned around yet. He did not know that his attacker was Katie.

"Well, get up!"

Marcus rolled over and looked at her. "Can I help you?"

Katie sat down on the side of the bed. "Yeah, why do you and Oliver hate each other?"  
>Marcus looked taken aback. "What?"<p>

"You heard me."

"What brought this on?"

Katie shrugged. "He and I had a little chat."  
>"And?"<p>

"Your name may have come up."

"And?"

Katie shrugged. "And I may have asked him, but he did not tell me a thing. He said I was complicated."

Marcus leaned back into his pillows. "Well, it is complicated."

"Are you going to tell me?"

"Nope."

Katie stood up. "Why?"

Marcus rolled back over. "That's the price you pay for waking me up."

_**So, I've decided to skip over the rest of the Quidditch Cup, because we all know what happens. **_


	11. Chapter 11: Moments

Chapter Eleven: Moments

Disclaimer: All characters belong to J.K. Rowling.

Author's Note: This fanfiction is going to be different from my other stories. This begins during Chamber of Secrets and goes up until three years after the Dark War. So, pay attention the time, so you don't get confused. Some of the chapters are other Marcus Flint/Katie Bell stories, just with more changes and deleted scenes added.

**Bold: Flashback**

Time: Harry Potter and Goblet of Fire

Genre: Romance, Drama, and Friendship

**Okay, this is very short. I plan on doing one more chapter before the holidays, but I don't know if that will happen. **

**August**

Marcus laid back against the top bunk at Katie's house. He had finally gotten to being comfortable in her home. Her dad was rather uptight about him being in her room, but he had grown to like Marcus. He felt relief about this. He hated it when the males in his girlfriend's family did not like him.

Of course, he was not too sure about her old brother, James...He did not live at home anymore nor in the country, for that matter. He was working in New Zealand as a Healer.

Katie climbed up next to him. "Hey."

Marcus looked at her. "Hey."

Katie looked at him. "I would kiss you, but my father is in the room next to us."

"Yeah, I'd rather live..."  
>"What? That's not what you are supposed to say."<p>

Marcus put his hands up in front of him as a sign of surrender. "What was I supposed to say?"

Katie sat up. "You're supposed to be like, I'll risk it."

Marcus rolled over and put his back to her. "Well, I'd like to live."

"You know, I would hit you, if I knew you weren't sore."

Marcus turned his head toward her. "Being injured does have its good things."

Katie glared him. "No, it does not."

Marcus shrugged. "Whatever."

"Don't whatever me!"  
>Marcus sat up. "I believe that I just did."<p>

"Don't."

Marcus tickled her. "What are you going to do about it?"

Katie was laughing. "St-sto-stop it"

Marcus does not listen.

"Marcus, I'm serious!"

What are you going to do about it?"

Katie reached up under his shirt and tickled his stomach. He stopped tickling her. "That's cheating."

She looked innocently up at him. "Nope, it's not."

Marcus pinned her down to the bed and crawled over top of her. Their faces were centimetres apart. He also pinned her arms down. "Now, what are you going to do?"

Katie smiled a wicked smile at him. "This."

"Huh?"

"That's for me to know and you to find out."

Marcus looked confused.

Katie drew her legs up. Marcus jumped back thinking that she was going to kneel him in a bad spot. However, Katie had other intentions and without his knowledge, he was going exactly what she wanted him to do. She sit up quickly and shoved him from the top bunk. He landed on the floor with a loud thump.

Just as he was sitting up, the door opened and Katie's father, Jim, stuck his head in. "What on earth on you two doing in here?" He had not noticed Marcus on the floor.

"Nothing," Katie said.

"That hurt," Marcus said at the same time.

Jim looked at Marcus on the floor and then at Katie. He shook his head on walked out of the room, closing the door behind him.

Marcus looked up at Katie. "He didn't even ask if I was okay."

Katie responded by throwing a pillow at him, which hit him in the face.

**Like I said short chapter...This came to me one night at midnight...**


	12. Chapter 12: End of the Summer

Chapter 12: End of the Summer

.

Disclaimer: All characters belong to J.K. Rowling.

Author's Note: This fanfiction is going to be different from my other stories. This begins during Chamber of Secrets and goes up until three years after the Dark War. So, pay attention the time, so you don't get confused. Some of the chapters are other Marcus Flint/Katie Bell stories, just with more changes and deleted scenes added.

**Bold: Flashback**

Time: Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire

Genre: Romance, Drama, and Friendship

Rating: PG-13

**Septembers 1 Platform Nine and Three Quarters**

Katie looked up at the Hogwarts Express. She was excited to go back to school, but, at the same time, sad. Marcus would not be going with her. She looked back at him.

"You will come to Hogsmeade, won't you?" she asked him.

Marcus nodded. "If I don't have a game."

"Or are in the hospital," Katie muttered under her breath.

"Hey, I heard that!"

Katie smiled at him. She would kiss him, but Jenna and her dad were watching them. Watching them very closely. She got the idea that her dad did not trust Marcus with his daughter yet. She thought that her father would be used to him by now. They had been dating for close to two years.

Marcus took a step closer.

"Don't," Katie whispered.

"Your dad is looking, right?" he inquired.

She nodded.

Marcus turned around and waved at her father.

Katie smacked his chest, hard. "Don't do that," she hissed.

Marcus rubbed his chest. "That hurt."

"Well, you deserved it."

"For what?"

"Waving at my dad."

"Is it a crime to be nice?"

"No..."

"Then, what is the problem."

"Never mind," Katie muttered under her breath.

Haley Flint was watching the scene between her brother and Katie. She smiled. As least Marcus was happy with her. She had not liked his previous girlfriend, Avril and was quite happy when they broke up.

She smiled and climbed onto the Hogwarts Express.

Katie turned toward the train. "I'd better go."

Marcus nodded. "Yeah, you need your education."

Katie looked up at him. "Do you remember the first time we spoke off the Quidditch pitch?"

"Huh?"

"The one when you holding your chest."

"I was sick, so I would I remember?"

Katie pretended not to hear that part. "Well, I do."

**Marcus sat down hard in the Quidditch stands. His lungs were killing him. He couldn't breathe and his chest hurt. He buried his face in his hands and didn't move until someone touched him. He looked up. **

** "Are you okay?" Katie asked him. She had a look of concern on her face. **

** "Fantastic," he muttered. "Never been better." **

** Gently, she lowered his head onto her lap and began to stroke his dark hair. To her surprise, he let her. After a while he rolled over onto his back.**

Marcus kissed her the top of her head. "You'd better go," he whispered softy.

Katie sighed and nodded. "Yeah, I know." She stood up on her tiptoes and kissed his lips.

He turned his head to deepen the kiss. After several minutes, he broke the kiss. "Seriously, Katie, if you don't go, you'll miss the train."

Katie bit her lip. "See you later."

"Bye," Marcus said.

Katie jumped on the train seconds before it departed. As the train pulled out of King's Cross, she kept looking back until Marcus had disappeared completely.

~***~  
><strong>Flint Manor, The Next Day<strong>

"Let's be honest here, Remus, those attacks at the World Cup were not by chance!" Brad Flint exclaimed.

Remus Lupin stood in front of the Auror. "I know that, Brad. Something's coming, something bigger than any of us know."

Arthur Weasley turned away from the window. "What does Dumbledore say?"

Brad walked out from behind his desk. "That's just it, he hasn't said a word."

The solid oak door opened and Jasmine Flint stepped in. "That's very strange."

Brad looked at his wife. "What is?"

"The fact that Dumbledore hasn't said a word."

Remus took a deep breath. "Maybe it's because the mail is too shaky."

"Mad-Eye said that one of his owls was attacked last week."

The group nodded.

"Maybe he doesn't want to send anything by mail, because he fears one of your family members would see it," Arthur said to Brad.

Brad looked at Arthur. "Why would he fear that?"

Arthur does not look Brad in the eye. "Well, if you must know, I'm talking about Marcus."

"Why on earth would he fear Marcus reading it?" Jasmine demanded to know.

"Well, given his track record..." Arthur trailed off once he the look Brad was giving him.

"Like the twins are any better!" Brad snorted.

Remus stepped in. "Look, Marcus probably would not say anything."

"And besides, he doesn't even stay here most of the time. He's always either at the pitch or at his house," Jasmine said.

Arthur looked at her. "Isn't he here now?"

"That's beside the point."

Remus cleared his throat. "Marcus could also be a gain for us."

"Why?" Brad inquired.

"He could get behind the enemy lines."

"How?" Arthur inquired.

"Because he's got connections," Brad said.

Arthur looked confused.

"He knows a lot of people and people know him," Brad said. "The Malfoys, for example, would not think anything of it if he shows up and starts asking questions. He's at the right age for experimenting in the Dark Arts."

"Why him?" Arthur inquired.

"Because he's fresh out of Slytherin," Brad said.

Remus nodded. "Is he still around?"

Brad looked at his wife.

"He was twenty minutes ago," Jasmine said.

Brad stood up. "I'll see if I can find him."

Brad returned five minutes later with his son behind him.

Marcus looked around at the people. "What's going on?"

Remus patted the seat next to Jasmine. "Sit down."

Marcus sat down next to his mum. "Look, whatever it is, I didn't mean to do it."

"Do what?" Brad inquired.

Marcus looked at the floor. "Nothing."

"We need to talk," Remus said. Then, he began to tell Marcus the plan.

**This will more than likely be the last chapter until after the holidays. **

.


	13. Chapter 13: Made of Scars

Chapter Thirteen: Made of Scars

Disclaimer: All characters belong to J.K. Rowling.

Author's Note: This fanfiction is going to be different from my other stories. This begins during Chamber of Secrets and goes up until three years after the Dark War. So, pay attention the time, so you don't get confused. Some of the chapters are other Marcus Flint/Katie Bell stories, just with more changes and deleted scenes added.

**Bold= Flashback**

Time: Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire

Genre: Romance, Drama, and Friendship

Rating: PG-13

Marcus stared back at them. "You want to me what?"

Arthur looked at the boy. "We heard us."

Marcus looked at all of them. "Can't you find someone else?"

Brad looked at his son. "We appear to lacking people in your age department."

Marcus looked at them, but did not say a word.

"You could possibly save hundreds of lives," Brad informed him.

"But, if this fails, I'm the one who's going to get killed."

"We won't let that happen," Remus reassured him.

Marcus did not buy it, but kept his mouth shut. He was not all that sure how he felt about these people. Sure, he had known them since he was a small child, but, still, they were not his best of friends. He knew what they thought of him. They believed that he "a up to now good Slytherin." The fact that was the former Quidditch captain did not help either. There was also that indicant in his fifth year where he broke Percy's nose...Good times, good times.

He stared back at them. "What if I say no?"

Kingsley spoke this time. "Then, we will never know if we were right or wrong."

Marcus shrugged. "You'll know either way eventually." He looked around at them; he expected them snap at him, but they did not. It just almost disappointed him.

"That's true, but we don't have forever," Remus stated.

"So, this leaves you guys with me?" Marcus inquired.

The rest of the group nodded.

No pressure or anything...

Katie sat in the Great Hall next to Angelina and Alicia. A few seats down from them, Fred and George were whispering quietly. This was very strange. Normally, the twins never shut up. This was very puzzling indeed. She never really did understand how their minds worked.

Not that she wanted too either...

"So, are you still with him?" Angelina inquired. She did not like the fact that Katie was dating Marcus, even though they had been together for almost two years.

Katie watched the new first years walk in. Her blue eyes followed the long line. Just five years ago today, she had been one of them. "Why wouldn't I be?"

Angelina shrugged. "I would had thought that one of those groupies would have ate him up."

"Why?"

"He's a professional Quidditch player, Katie. Think about it."

Katie did not respond right away.

Alicia stepped in. "You don't know that, Angelina. He hasn't cheated in two years."

"But he cheated on Avril Lestrange," Angelina objected.

"And do you blame him?" Alicia exclaimed.

Angelina had a thoughtful look on her face. "Now that I think about it, I don't blame him."

Katie watched as the Sorting Hat was place onto a first year's head. "Finally, you're coming to your senses."

Angelina tapped Katie's arm. "No, I never said that I like him."

Katie watched as another first year was sorted. "Would you be complaining about him this much if he was Oliver?"

That stopped Angelina in her tracks. "Um...I would say something."

"Something is better than nothing," Alicia added.

Katie gave her a dirty look. "Why would you say something?"

"Because he's too old for you, Katie!" Angelina exclaimed. "You're fifteen."

"Almost sixteen," Katie objected.

Angelina rolled her eyes. "Flint's what nineteen."

"He just turned eighteen."

That made Angelina stop. "Oh. When did that happen?"

"Mid-July."

Angelina turned her attention to the sorting. Katie could not help but to smirk. She knew that she had hit a nerve with Angelina. She did not understand what the big deal was. After all, why did it matter to them who she dated? Whatever, they did not know Marcus nor would they ever. They only saw him as a jerk and as a rotten Slytherin. She did not see that side of him. All she saw was his gentle and good ways. She was not going to let them cause the end of her and Marcus. Nope, they was just going to have to live with the fact that she was dating Marcus Flint, centre Chaser for the Falmouth Falcons and former Slytherin Quidditch captain, with emphasises on the former part.

**Oliver Wood lovingly looked at Katie Bell. She was beautiful in her own way. She had the body of a Quidditch player, but the nature of a lamb. She could be fiery on moment or she could be breakable the next. Oliver loved all of this about her. Most of all he loved the fact that she was so loyal to him. **

** Everyday she would be there for him. She would listen to his complaints about anything. She would help him heal his wounds after a bad Quidditch game or practice. She would care for him when he was ill or injured. **

** That was before, he caught Marcus Flint staring at her. Flint had been absent from school for some time (almost a month). He had been suffering (Oliver thought he deserved it) from pneumonia and had been on bed rest for two weeks. After the bed rest, he had still been too weak to attend classes. Oliver liked him better that way. He also hoped that Flint was too weak to practice. **

** Two days later, he caught Flint staring at her again. This time it was in the library. Oliver never did figure out why Flint was in the library in the first place. The last time he checked, Flint wasn't really a studious student. **

** The third time, he caught Katie looking back. He approached Flint in the entrance hall. He made a fist and punched Flint in the stomach. Of course, Snape came out of the Great Hall, saw Oliver hit Flint, and gave him a week's detention. **

** "If you touch her, I'll kill you," Oliver hissed to Flint one Tuesday afternoon in Charms class. **

** Flint looked innocently at the front of the room. "I don't know what you're talking about." **

** "Katie." **

** "Katie who?" **

** Oliver fought the urge to hit the other boy. "Don't play dumb. I know that's hard for you." **

** Flint turned looked at Oliver. "You never did answer my question." **

** "Katie Bell." **

** "The little blond Chaser?" **

** "Yes." **

** Flint looked away. "It's none of your business who I flirt with." **

** Oliver came up out of his seat. He reached inside his robes for his wand. This time he was going to do more damage than the punch did. **

** "I wouldn't do that if I was you." Oliver glared at Flint, who had his wand pointed at him. "You know you can't beat me." **

** Oliver looked at the ancient clock. There was enough time for one smart comment. "Besides, everyone knows you're such a flirt anyway. You never commit to one girl." **

** Oliver rushed out the door before Flint could curse him.**

** Later that night Oliver asked Katie the question he had been dying to ask her. "Katie, will you be mine?" **

** Katie kissed his lips gently. "Forever." **

Oliver Wood woke with a start. He sat up and looked around his northern English apartment. It still haunted him that he lost Katie to Flint. Sure, he and Katie were still friends, but it did not change the fact that she was with Flint! He made him sick!

He hit his fist off the nightstand. He cursed Flint in every manner he could think of. He was even half-tempted to march to Flint's Falmouth (at least that was where he thought Fling lived) home and kill him in his sleep. That was quite fun actually...

No, he could not. Oliver took deep, calming breathes. He attempted to go back to sleep, but his heart and soul would not rest. Both were made of scars.

**Two Days Later**

Marcus stripped out of his uniform and left the muddy, grey mound on the floor. He figured that he would clean it up later. He looked down at his legs, they were covered in mud as was his arms. He sighed. He had gotten soaked at Hogwarts, but not like this. At least at Hogwarts, he had a chance to get dry. They were required to bring two pairs of uniform to practice, but whenever it poured the rain down like this, it was impossible to stay dry.

He trudged upstairs to take a shower. The shower that was hot enough to burn him. Half-an-hour later he came back down, barefoot, dressed in black shorts and a gray T-shirt. Once downstairs, he realized that he was not alone. He pulled his wand out and carefully made his way through his house.

"Boy, do you always try to curse people?" one of the shadows asked.

Marcus jumped and looked at his father. He put his wand away. "No. What are you doing here?"

Brad Flint stepped into the light. "To see if you've decided."

Marcus walked down the hallway and his dad followed him. He put a pot of tea on. He was stalling, so he could get out of answering the question.

"Well?"

"Well what?"

"Have you decided?"

Marcus looked into his dad's blue eyes. He knew that they were a lot alike. Both were stubborn, fighters, and had a temper. They were so much alike that they often fought over their views. Both were made of scars, some were visible and some were not. Both had at stake with this answer.

"Well?"

Marcus bit his lip and answered...


	14. Chapter 14: Renegade

Chapter Fourteen: Renegade

Disclaimer: All characters belong to J.K. Rowling.

Author's Note: This fanfiction is going to be different from my other stories. This begins during Chamber of Secrets and goes up until three years after the Dark War. So, pay attention the time, so you don't get confused. Some of the chapters are other Marcus Flint/Katie Bell stories, just with more changes and deleted scenes added.

Time: Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire

Genre: Romance, Drama, and Friendship

Rating: PG-13

**It is now October. This chapter includes November and a little of December **

He handed the book and parchment over. He knew that he shouldn't be doing this. This could cost all of them their lives.

"Is this everything?" one asked.

"It's all I could find," he said.

"Good," another said.

"Are you sure about this," a third inquired.

He nodded. "Positive." He turned to leave. "I'll be back next week."

Marcus slid a dark robe overtop of his T-shirt and jeans. He ran his hand over his rough face. He knew that he should shave, but he really did not want to. He coughed a deep cough. Nope, he should not had stayed in his wet clothes yesterday. It was not his smartest move. Whatever...

Tonight was supposed to go out with the team. He really did not want, but he had to. It was supposed to be team bonding. He was not sure how going to a bar was team bonding, but he guessed that he would find out. He figured that the rest of the team was using it as an excuse to get heavily intoxicated. They had four games this past weekend and had won all four. This was more of a celebration party than anything. He would go with them. He did not want to been seen as a renegade toward the group.

He closed his robes and picked his wand off the nightstand. It was time to go, time to face them all. He did one final sweep of his home. He did not want to come back and find that one or many of his dad's friends has broken into the house. None of them had been around for a few days, but you never knew.

You never could tell.

Angelina sat down next to Katie the next morning at breakfast. She had a big smile on her face. "Well, I'm going to do it?"

Katie buttered her toast. "Do what?"

Angelina piled her plate full of eggs. "Why, put my name into the goblet of fire!"

Katie choked on her orange juice. "Do what?"

Angelina took a big bite of eggs. "I'm going to try to be the Hogwarts champion."

Katie gapped at her. She did not understand why anyone would want to a champion. "Why?"

Angelina shrugged. "Why not?"

Katie did not answer. She turned her attention back to her breakfast. Everyone was trying to get their name into the goblet of fire. She believed that she was the only one who was not. She sighed. In her mind, not wanting to be a Hogwarts champion made sense. However, at the same time, she sort of felt like a renegade. She felt like she was out of the group.

Fred and George slid into the empty spaces across from Katie. They had a mysterious look in their eyes. She knew that they were up to something, but she just was not sure what that something was.

"Well, we've almost done it!" Fred exclaimed as Lee Jordan and Alicia arrived.

"Done what?" Angelina inquired.

"Completed the aging potion," George said very seriously.

"I thought you guys were joking about that," Alicia mused.

George put his arm around Alicia. "Would we ever joke about something like this."

"Well, I guess not..." Alicia trailed off into space.

"Besides, we've got to do something, now that we don't have Quidditch to keep us occupied," Fred said.

Katie really missed Quidditch. She really enjoyed the sport. She missed the wind in her hair. She wanted to feel the wonderful feeling of scoring a goal. She wanted to hear the crowd roar. Sure, she could go watch Marcus play, but it was not the same. She wanted to play, not watch. She had went to the pitch a few times to fly around in circles, but it did not bring back the rush that actually playing the game did. Once you was captivated by the game, there was no going back. Once you were in, you were in. When it was gone, it felt like a piece of you was missing.

"Do you think it's going to work?" Alicia asked the twins.

Fred put on a serious face. "Well, we went to library..."

Katie snorted. "I'm impressed!"  
>Fred looked at her. "Why?"<p>

"You guys actually went into the library."

"That is quite impressive," Alicia said in order to back Katie up.

"Why, thank you ladies," Fred said.

"Yes, we think that it is going to work," George added.

Katie did not doubt them. Whenever the twins put their to something, they usually were pretty successful. They were brilliant, in fact. She knew that they had to potential to be the smartest people in the school, but they chose to mess around. She sighed. She wished that she had the nerve to act like them, but she could not bring herself to.

She gathered up her things. "Well, I have to get to Ancient Runes."

They said their good-byes and Katie exited.

Marcus groaned as he rolled over and glanced at his clock. It was only eight-thirty. He pulled the blankets back over his head. He had a killer headache. In his mind, the only bad thing about getting drunk was the next morning. He normally did not get drunk, but last night the team had pressured him. He knew why they put pressure on him: he was almost a year younger than all of them, some had almost ten years on him. True, it had not been the first time he got drunk, but it had been the first time since his accident last year.

He buried himself deeper into the blankets. Stupid, stupid hangover. He knew that he was going to pay for last night and now he was. Crap, he could not even get back to sleep now.

He stared at the green fabric of his blanket. He liked that blanket. It did not have anything to do with the fact that it was his old house colours, but the fact that is was so warm and cosy. He shook himself. Okay, he still had to be little drunk. Normally, he did not think about his blankets.

He was just about to go back to sleep when his mobile's ringtone went off. He banged his head off his headboard. Swearing, he reached for the stupid Muggle device. It did have its uses, but it also gave him a headache. He looked at the caller ID and pressed ignore. It was just his dad, no one important.

He buried himself back down into his blankets and drifted back to dreamland.

**November**  
>Leanne sat down next to Katie in Transfiguration. "Hey, there's going to be a ball on Christmas Day!" the other girl shirked.<p>

Katie was in the process of pulling her books out of her bag. "Huh?"

Leanne touched Katie. "There's going to be a ball!"

Katie looked at Leanne. "For what?"

"Why the Triwizard Tournament!" Leanne pauses. "I was thinking of asking Jimmy Reyes from Ravenclaw. You know him, right?"

Katie just acted like she knew who he was, so she did not have to play a naming game. Leanne thought and believed that Katie knew exactly who and what she was talking about. Most of the time Katie had no idea. After the first few times of this game, Katie quickly learned that it was better to play along than ask questions.

"Are you going to ask Marcus?" Leanne asked.

"To what?"

"To the Yule Ball!"

Katie smiled. "I'm not going to ask, I'm going to tell him."

Leanne raised her eyebrows. "I like the way you think."

After class, Katie called Marcus. Several rings passed before he picked up.

"Hello?" He sounded like he had just woke up. Katie figured that he just had.

"Hey, what are you doing Christmas Day night?" Katie asked.

"Going to my mom's side's Christmas dinner."

"Do you want to get out of it?"

"Heck yeah!" There was a slient pause. "Wait, what's the catch?" 

Katie put an innocent look on her face that he could not see. "How do you feel about going to the Yule Ball?"

**The next chapter is really long. It's around seventeen pages. **


	15. Chapter 15: Carol of the Bells

Carol of the Bells

Disclaimer: All characters belong to J.K. Rowling.

Author's Note: Spend the holidays with Marcus and Katie. Okay, this was written as a chapter for "The Heart of Everything." So, everything's not really explained. If you want to know, what's going on, read it please. Yeah, I'm bad at keeping up on updates.

_Italics: Vision _

**Bold: Katie's Dream/Flashback**

Time: Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire

Genre: Drama and Romance

Date Finished: November 25, 2011

Rating: PG-13

Eighteen-year-old Marcus Flint laid back against his pillow. He looked out his window and watched the snow fall on the soft, rolling hills of southern England. He was trying to fall asleep, but found that he could not. Tomorrow was Christmas. He would be spending the day with his family, but that night he would be going back to Hogwarts for the Yule Ball. He really did not want to go, but it was either that or have to go to his mum's family. He really did not want to do that either.

Either way, he was doomed.

He sighed and turned his head. His clock read twelve o'clock am. He rolled back over and muttered, "Merry Christmas."

He was actually quite surprised with himself. It was the holidays and he was in bed before one o'clock am. He was also sober and alone. He was not alone in a bad way, but in a good way. If that was even possible...

And he was at his parent's house.

Outside, the Christmas lights came gently into the room causing a rainbow on his walls. It reminded him of a Muggle toy that he could not think of the name at the present moment. Katie had one and had told him the name, but it was not coming to him at the moment.

Whatever, it did not really matter.

It was a silent night and all was calm, just as Christmas Eve should be.

Katie Bell laid on her bed at Hogwarts. This Christmas was very difficult. Yeah, it was going to be fun, but it was also her first Christmas away from her family. She was always home for Christmas. Heck, even Marcus was with his family on Christmas. She knew for a fact that he had not been home since mid-August. Well, since Quidditch season started. He was centre Chaser for the Falmouth Falcons.

She watched the snow fall. Tomorrow was Christmas, the greatest day of the year.

She was excited for the Yule Ball. She had a real pretty dress to wear. It was a deep purple, but it was not so deep that you could not tell that it was not purple. The top of it was tight fitted and it sparkled in the light. The bottom of it was wavy and it flowed out gently from her in magical waves. It made her feel like a princess. Her shoes were purple shinny flats. Heals were a big no-no for her. She did not want to fall down the stairs and kill herself. She was going to cruel her long, blond hair into gentle waves. She was going to pin the top of it up and then let the rest fall around her face. Yes, she was even going to do her makeup. She planned on doing her makeup in light pink. Light pink lip-gloss, light pink blush, and light pink sparkly eye shadow. She was planning on wearing mascara and eyeliner with it. She was not sure about perfume yet though...

What Marcus was wearing was another story. She had no clue what he would be in. She knew that he owned dress robes and seen him in them once. He probably had not even thought about it yet and probably would not think about it until fifteen minutes before. She hoped that he will shave before. She hated it when he did not do so.

Please, please, please let him shave.

Marcus was in a deep sleep and he was dreaming a strange dream.

_Bellatrix cursed the door in. While two Death Eaters grabbed Marcus, she took one look around the room, and then she looked at her Draco, who was lying on the floor. She gave him his voice back and he immediately began to tell her about Marcus. When he was done, she narrowed her eyes at Marcus. "Take him to the courtyard," she ordered to other Death Eaters. "I will personally deal with him." _

_ Marcus's heart skipped a beat. He knew that this was going to hurt. The two Death Eaters dragged him down the stairs, out the kitchen door, and into the large courtyard. There they threw him on the ground and kicked him. He grunted in pain. They covered him with their wands. Every time he moved, one of them kicked him in the stomach. _

_ After what seemed like a lifetime, Bellatrix, followed by Draco, entered the courtyard. She dismissed the other Death Eaters and went over to stand over Marcus. "You know what I do to traitors?" Marcus shut his eyes. "You're going to find out." She turned to Draco. "Make him lie down on his back, pull back his robes, and bare his chest." _

_ Draco glared at Marcus as he did as he was ordered. "This is what you get," he hissed, "for betraying your friends, for being a traitor." _

_ Marcus narrowed his eyes at Draco. "Well, at least I didn't take the easy way out," he hissed back. "At least after this is over, I won't have a jail sentence." This little comment earned him a kick in the stomach. He gasped, but didn't say anything. _

_ "You have to win first." Bellatrix took a step towards him. She pulled out her wand and knelt down next to Marcus. "And the way, it's looking it won't be to promising for you, boy. In the end, it's all about power." She stood up and pointed her wand at him. "Now, it's game time. I'm the cat who caught the rat. Crucio!" _

_ His body arched. He tried to ignore the pain, but the pain wouldn't go away. It lasted for what seemed like hours. When she finally quit, he was about really to pass out. _

_ She placed a foot on his chest. "So, kid, how's the Order?" He didn't answer. "You know they're here don't you?" She took her foot off his chest and seized his head. She twisted him so that he was looking into the forest. "You see that big tree; your daddy is hiding behind it. Over there is the werewolf. The rest of them are in there too." She let go of his head. "See, they're here to watch you die. You know what's funny, kid, not one of them is making a move to save you. You must not be that important." _

_ She cursed him again and again. Each time he gasped in pain, she laughed and kept on cursing him. _

_ After several rounds of this, she turned to the trees. "Oh, Bradley, guess what? I'm going to hurt your son." She pulled a knife out of her robes. "And it's going to hurt!" _

_ Once again, Bellatrix turned to her nephew. "Move his arm." _

_ "Which one?" Draco inquired. _

_ She smiled. "You chose." _

_ Draco chose Marcus's right arm. He held it away from the older boy's side._

_ Bellatrix raised the knife and stabbed deep into Marcus's side. _

"Marcus, MARCUS!"

Someone was shaking him and yelling his name.

He woke up with a jerk and found himself looking at his thirteen-year-old sister, Haley. "Dad said that you have to get up."

Marcus rolled over and looked at his clock. It was nine o'clock in the morning.

Haley hit him. "Now! The little ones are wanting to open their presents!"

Marcus groaned. His stepbrothers were here with their families. "Give me a second to put some clothes on."

Haley stepped toward the door. "Yeah, you might need those."

She slammed it behind her.

~***~  
>Katie rolled over and stared into the soft flames of the fire. Christmas was here. She climbed out of bed and looked at the stack of presents at the foot of it. They looked so pretty in their lovely wrapping. She did not want to ruin it. On her right, Leanne began to move.<p>

"Merry Christmas," Leanne whispered to Katie.

"Merry Christmas."

Leanne sat up and looked at her own mound of presents and jumped out of bed. She was more awake then she ever had been. "PRESENTS!" She began to tear into them.

Katie turned back to her own pile. She picked the one up from Marcus and opened it. After nearly two years of dating, she still did not know what to expect from him. She opened it and saw that he had gotten her the new Chaser gloves that she wanted. She smiled and tried them on. They fit wonderfully on her. A smaller package fall out of the wrapping. She bent down and carefully picked it up.

Leanne's head shot up. "What is it?"

Katie stared at the package. "Who knows? It's from Marcus."

Leanne raised her eyebrows suggestively.

Katie threw wrapping paper at her. "You're sick."

Leanne shrugged. "You never know."

Katie turned her attention back to the package. He would not think about that, would he? Great, now Leanne had her thinking provocative thoughts. She took a deep breath and opened the package.

Leanne leaned over her shoulder and swore quite loudly once the contents were revealed. "That was not cheap."

Katie stared down at the object in her lap. It was a purple stone on a gold band. It was the ring that she had been wanting. She could not believe that he had gotten her that, let alone that he remembered she wanted it. "It's my ring," she whispered.

"The one you always talked about?" Leanne inquired.

Katie nodded. "I can't believe her remembered."

"Well, it is Christmas and miracles do happen."

Katie slid the ring on and stared at it. Maybe this was her Christmas miracle.

Either that or he just wanted a heated make-out session.

Marcus walked downstairs. His old injuries were bothering him again. He sighed. The stupid weather was changing again. He just wished that it would stay one way and end his suffering. He could hear the young children screaming with joy and excitement. He winced. Another thing that he was not looking forward to. He loved his nieces, but sometimes they made him a little insane. (Yes, he just had nieces. None of his half brothers had produced a son yet.)

Haley was sitting at the bottom of the stairs. He sat down next to her. She looked up and offered him a butterbeer. "You're going to need this," she told him.

Marcus took a drink. "Where's yours?"

Haley shook her head. "I don't drink."

Marcus shrugged.

"You shouldn't either."

"I think I'm going to need something stronger than this to get through the day."

"Yeah, you've got the Yule Ball tonight."

Marcus sighed. "Don't remind me."

Haley smiled. "Glad I'm not going."

Marcus looked at his sister. "Didn't anyone ask you?"

Haley nodded. "Like three or four boys."

"Why did you say no?"

"Dances aren't my thing."

Marcus stared straight ahead. "They're not mine either."

Haley patted him on the back. "See, brother, that's what you get for having a girlfriend."

Marcus made a face.

Now, it was Haley's turn to shrug. "Just saying."

Marcus took another drink.

Haley reached up and took it from him. "You might want to do this sober. Katie would kill and so would Dad."

Marcus stood up. "Wouldn't be the first time."

"True."

Katie looked at the clock. She had seven hours until the dance. She sighed and laid down on her bed. Within a few moments she was asleep.

**Marcus had just gotten done with a rough practice and he was sore. Bole had hit him in the back of the head. It knocked him out for a few minutes. Even though he should have gone to the hospital wing, he hadn't yet. It was a place he tended to avoid. **

**Since he had to gather the balls up, he would be the last one in the locker room. If he took his time, then he would be the only one in there. He really didn't want to listen to the others complain about their problems. He already had a headache and really didn't want another one. **

**It took about twenty minutes to gather the balls. Slowly he walked toward the tunnel. His skull felt like it had been cracked in two. Instead of his head feeling light, it felt as if he weighed the amount of two bricks. **

**When he came out of the tunnel, he saw her. She was leaning against the exit like she had been waiting in him. Her smile revealed her prefect teeth. It was also the kind of smile that said she wanted something. **

"**Yes?" he asked. **

**She walked over to him. "You're hurt." **

"**What makes you say that?" **

"**Your pupils are dilated." **

"**And?" **

"**It would take something really big and/or hard to hurt you're thick head." **

**Marcus smiled. "Are you saying that it's my brain that's big?" **

**She was really close now. "No." He could see every individual lash. "I'm just saying you have a big head." **

**Wait! Marcus froze. This was sweet, innocent Katie Bell. He couldn't do anything to her. Yet, it seemed like she was hitting on him. This wasn't right, but, yet, it felt so right. **

"**If my head didn't hurt, I would feel insulted by that little remark." **

**She leaned in so that their foreheads were touching. "So, are you going to do anything about it?" she whispered. **

"**Yes," Marcus whispered back. **

"**What?" **

"**This." **

"**Stand here and talk to me." **

**No, I mean this." **

**And he kissed her. **

Katie awoke with a smile on her face. She rolled over and looked at the clock. Only half an hour had passed. Great. Today was going to be a rather long day.

~***~  
>Marcus leaned back against the sofa and looked around the living room. It was a mess of wrapping paper, packaging, and tape. He did not know how little kids could make such a mess. He figured that he was just a bad when he was little, but that was before he got elected to clean up duty.<p>

Lovely, lovely.

He cracked his neck and looked at the mess once again. Maybe he could con one of his nieces into cleaning it up. Hum...He could tell them that Father Christmas would bring them more presents next year if they did. However, that would mean that he would have to buy more presents. Was it worth it? He was thinking that he was. Decisions, decisions. What to do, what to do?

His mum stuck her head inside the living room. "Marcus, lunch is ready," she said as she stepped into the room. She put her hands on her hips and looked the mess. "Well, this will just have to wait. What time are you meeting Katie?"

"Seven-thirtyish," Marcus said.

"Do know what you're wearing?"

"Sort of."

"Shouldn't you be getting on that?"

Marcus looked at his mum. "Probably."

She walked out of the room. "Don't come to me whenever she kills you."

~***~  
>Katie got up and looked at the clock. It was six o'clock, a reasonable time to get ready for the Yule Ball. Well, if she took a half hour shower, half hour to get dressed, and an hour to hound Marcus to get ready. Yeah, it would all work out.<p>

She walked over to the closet and pulled her dress out. She normally was not the dress kind of girl, but she really did like this one. Her dad and stepmother had not been able to afford one, but she did have access to Marcus's bank account. He's the one who gave her the information and it was not like he was going to miss a few hundred Galloons. He got paid quite well as Quidditch player. He also had a large trust fund from his parents and other relatives.

She was still amazed at all of beauty that the dress offered. She held it up against her and looked at herself in the mirror. It was so magical, so wonderful. It left her wonderstruck, enchanted. It left her mystified, charmed. So many wonderful feelings were rushing through her at the current moment.

She sighed and ever so gently laid the dress down on the dress. She grabbed her shower things. Before leaving the room, she touched the dress one more time.

Marcus fell back on his bed. He looked up at his clock and swore. He had an hour until he had to meet Katie. Right on cue, his mobile went off. He looked at it and was not surprised to find that it was Katie. He answered it. "Hey," he said.

"Are you getting ready?" Katie demanded without any sort of proper greeting.

Marcus hopped off his bed and began to look around his room for his dress robes. "Working on it." He opened his dresser. "Don't I get a hi or Merry Christmas?"

There was a brief pause. "Nope."

"Why?"

"Because you need to hang up your phone and get ready."  
>Marcus slammed his dresser shut and looked around his room. "I am getting ready."<p>

"Do you know where your robes are?"

Marcus moved over to his closet and opened it. "That's a work in progress."

"MARCUS!"

He just about the dropped the phone. "I'll find them and be there."

"On time?"  
>"I'll be on time."<p>

There was a click. Marcus sighed. He did not know how people could believe that she was a sweet, quite, and innocent girl. He got over that statement a long time ago.

He found his robes in the closet, grabbed them, and went to shower.

**Yule Ball**

Katie stood in the entrance hall waiting for Marcus. Yeah, she knew that she was early and, yeah, she knew that he would not be here until the last possible second. She felt someone standing behind her. She backed up into that person. This allowed her to determine the sex of the person, who was male.

"I told you that I would not be late," Marcus breathed into her ear.

Katie jumped as his breath sent cold shivers down the back of her neck. She looked up into his soft chocolate eyes. "Good."

"Were you doubting me?"

"Just a little."

She turned to look at him. He was wearing plain green dress robes that he somehow managed to make look elegant. He did not have them buttoned shut. Underneath he was wearing black dress pants and a white button down shirt. Both of these clung to his body, not to tight, but enough to imply that he was toned from years of playing Quidditch. On his feet, he was wearing a pair of black boots. His hair was getting a little long, not nearly as long as Harry's, but it was enough to show that it had a little wave to it.

And, yes, oh, yes, he had shaved.

She stood tall and kissed his smooth check. Then, she took his hand and pulled him toward the Great Hall.

Marcus dug his feet into the floor. "We don't have to go in right away."

Katie looked at him. "Why not?"

Marcus shrugged. "Why should we?"

Katie thought and could not come up with a reason. "Good point."

Marcus led her over to the grand staircase and sat down on the bottom step. He patted the empty stop next to him. She smiled and joined him. "So..." Marcus said.

"What?" Katie inquired. She had a smile of her face.

"I got elected to clean up duty."

She raised an eyebrow. "Oh, how did that go?"

Marcus shrugged. "Dunno, it was still there when I left."

"I'm taking it that you didn't do it."

"That's exactly right."

She leaned into him and breathed in his aftershave. "Was it there when you left?"

Marcus sucked in a lot of air. "Yeah."

She sighed. "And will it be there when you get back?"

Marcus shrugged. "It depends on rather Dad will get sick of looking at it."

She looked up at him. "Will he?"

"Nope, he'll make me do it."

Katie giggled, but stopped whenever she noticed a young girl enter the entrance hall.

She had long, dark brown wavy hair that went three-fourths of the way down her back. It was pulled back at the sides and the rest hung down. She was wearing a deep blue glittery dress and silver heals. She was also on the arm of fourth year Blaise Zabini.

Katie nudged Marcus. "Isn't that your sister?"

Marcus looked at her. "She told me that she wasn't coming."

Katie looked at him. "Guess what? I think she lied to you."

Marcus did not say anything. He was not mad. In fact, he liked Blaise, but he did wish that Haley had told him. Never mind, what was done was done.

"You're not going to freak out and kill Zabini are you?" Katie inquired.

"No, Blaise is okay," Marcus said.

"That is if he doesn't hurt Haley," Katie said.

"Exactly."

"Then, what?"

Marcus stood up and offered Katie his hand. She took it. "Then, I'll have to hurt him."

Katie laughed. She stood up and offered him her hand. "Come on, we should go in."

Marcus made a face. "Do we have to?"

Katie nodded. "We must."

Marcus took her hand. "Let's go get this nightmare over with."

Katie hit him across the stomach. "It's not a nightmare!"

"Oh, why is that?"

"Because you're with me."

Marcus pulled her toward the Great Hall without responding.

The Great Hall itself was even more magical than Katie imaged that it would be. The walls were covered in silver that shone when the candles' flames danced up the wall. Thousands upon thousands of candles flew around the hall, but somehow managed to avoid hitting anyone. The ceiling was a winter wonderland. It featured snow falling in a rather gentle sense with a clear blue sky as the background. Up where the staff table once stood was little round tables that went a fifth of the way onto the Great Hall floor. The rest of the Great Hall had been made into a huge dance floor with a stage on the north wall. Most of the student body and Hogwarts staff was already there awaiting the entrance of the champions.

Katie immediately spotted Angelina and Alicia with Fred and George. She made her way over to them. She turned back to make sure that Marcus was following.

"Hey," Alicia said once Katie reached her. They hugged. Alicia was wearing a silver version of Katie's dress.

Katie hugged her back, then turned to Angelina. "Hi."

"Nice dress," Angelina said with a smile on her face. She was wearing a yellow version of the same dress.

"You too."

Angelina looked behind Katie and saw Marcus. "I see you brought the troll with you."

Katie wished that her friends would get along with Marcus. "He's not a troll. He doesn't even look like one." This was very true. Marcus had no trollish features what so ever. Of course, he was freakish tall. He stood at six foot four. He looked like any other eighteen-year-old boy.

Marcus stood next to Katie. "So, did you miss me that much Johnson?"

Angelina glared at him. "No comment." She went back over to Fred.

Katie turned to Marcus. "Of course you would have some sort of comment."

Marcus shrugged. "Gotta keep up with her."

Alicia smiled at them. "Well, I'd best be getting back to George. It's nice to see you guys." She left.

Marcus had a thoughtful look on his face.

Katie was afraid to ask, but she knew if she did not, she would regret it. "What?"

"I think I'm starting to grow on Johnson."

"Why?"

"She wasn't so hateful toward me as she normally is."

Katie took his hand and smiled up at him as the doors opened and the champions entered.

Haley knew that Marcus had seen her with Blaise. She had not wanted to tell him that she had a date. She did not know if Marcus would have said anything, but she did not want to take that risk. Yes, Blaise was a year ahead of her in school. (She was a third year and would be fourteen-years-old on December twenty-seventh.) She thought that that he might had said something about that. However, now that she was thinking about it, Marcus had been three years ahead of Katie and was two and half years older. She shrugged. If he said anything, she would just bring that little fact up.

Blaise came back from getting drinks. "What are you thinking about?"

Haley took her drink. "Oh, nothing."

"You are too."

Haley looked back at her brother and Katie. They were now holding hands. "I wonder what Katie's parents would say if they knew where she was going to spend the night."

Blaise looked at Marcus and Katie. "I thought they weren't in a relationship like that."

Haley took a drink. "Oh, they're not, but they have spent nights together."

Blaise took a drink. "Would you tell on them?"

Haley had an evil look on her face. "Well, if he says anything about this..."

Blaise put his arm around her. "You two are alike more than you know."

Haley looked up at him. "How is that?"

"You both use people's secrets as a mean of personal gain."

Haley turned to look at him. "Only with each other."

Blaise smirked. "You two are more alike than you know."

Haley smiled. "Don't say that."

"Why?"

"It's an insult to me."

"What about him?"

"It's an honour."

Blaise burst out laughing.

After the champions came in and lead the first dance, Katie turned to Marcus. "Would you like to dance?"

Marcus looked at her. "I thought I was supposed to ask you."

Katie pulled him out onto the dance floor. "I'm not one for traditions." She put her arms around his waist. "Besides, if I waited on you, the dance would be over." Her blue eyes were shining.

They danced in and out of the other couples. Everyone and everything shone in the candlelight. The snow falling from the season was the perfect Christmas snow. Katie found herself looking up at it every few minutes. As a result, she stepped on Marcus's feet many times. Each time she did so, Marcus winced, but did not say a word.

Katie buried her face into his shoulder.

"Yes?" Marcus inquired.

Katie removed her face. "Can we go outside?"

Marcus led her off the dance floor. "I'd thought you'd never ask."

"Why don't you like dancing?"

"It's almost as a fun as having to drink that stupid healing Potion."

Katie laughed.

Marcus shrugged. "It's the truth."

They walked outside through the rose garden that was not there yesterday. At least, Katie thought that it was not there yesterday. She breathed in the deep scent of the roses. After about five minutes of walking, Katie stopped next to a bench and sat down. She patted the seat next to her and Marcus sat down.

She stared up at the night sky. "Everything's getting bad, isn't it?"

Marcus looked at her. "What are you talking about?"

"There's a storm coming."  
>Marcus looked down at the ground.<p>

Katie sighed. "I know you know Marcus."

Marcus looked up at her. "Do we have to discuss this on Christmas?"  
>"I guess not," Katie mumbled.<p>

Marcus kissed the top of her head. "Good."

Katie turned her head up at meet his lips and gently kissed him. "Merry Christmas," Katie said.

"Merry Christmas," Marcus whispered.

Behind them, the bell tower chimed in a wonderful carol of the bells.


	16. Chapter 16: Belong Here

Chapter Sixteen: Belong Here

Disclaimer: All characters belong to J.K. Rowling.

Author's Note: This fanfiction is going to be different from my other stories. This begins during Chamber of Secrets and goes up until three years after the Dark War. So, pay attention the time, so you don't get confused. Some of the chapters are other Marcus Flint/Katie Bell stories, just with more changes and deleted scenes added.

Time: Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire

Genre: Romance, Drama, and Friendship

Rating: PG-13

**The next two chapters are going to focus on Marcus. Then, we will return to Hogwarts and Katie. **

**February **

Coach David Holder stood on the muddy pitch that was home to the Falmouth Falcons. He breathed in the spring air. The air reeked of earthworms and standing water. He pulled on knee high boot out of the two inches of mud. The cleaning crews would have this cleaned up before tonight. Puddlemere United. In Holder's mind, Puddlemere was just about to get their worse defeat of the season handed to them. The Falcons had the strongest front three in the league and knew for sure they could bear the Keeper, Oliver Wood. His biggest concern was Marcus having to play against them. (Marcus and Wood had been teammates on a kid's league for close to two years.) Wood and Marcus had played both as opponents and as teammates for nearly fifteen years. Both knew each other's moves and both knew each other's weaknesses. It could either work to the Falcons gain or cost them.

He turned on heal. After fifteen years of coaching, twelve years of playing on the professional level, and fifteen on the minor leagues the feeling of Quidditch never got old. Heck, he loved the sport as much as he loved most of his family. Game day was the day he lived for. Today was going to be their day to shine. He knew it, he just knew it.

Marcus woke up and looked up at the ceiling. His blankets felt smooth and soft against his bare chest. He stretched his arms over his head. He pulled them down close to him. Today was game day, just like every Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, sometimes even Thursday. At first, it was exciting, now it just made him rather sleepy.

He threw the blankets back and wondered across the room into the adjoining bathroom. He slammed the door behind him. He stripped his shorts off and climbed into the steamy shower. After about five minutes of hot water, he decided that a hot shower was not such a great idea. He turned it cold. Hot was making him tried and he needed to wake up. Fifteen minutes later, he climbed out, threw on his uniform, and Apparated to the pitch.

**One Hour Later**

The line-up for the Falcons consisted of a number of nationalities. Trent Hastings, twenty-six, was a large Beater from southern Germany. Kevin Blair, twenty, was a medium built Beater from eastern Finland. Jamie Taubenfeld, nineteen, was a medium built left Chaser from western Canada; he was also dating the Seeker. Carter Collins, twenty-three, was a small right Chaser from South Africa. Shane Chang, twenty-five, was the Keeper from South Korea. Raine Daniels, eighteen, was the only female on the team and was Seeker from eastern Russia. She and Marcus had been signed together.

Hastings stood in front of the team with Holder. "Conditions good?" Hastings inquired.

Holder nodded. "Probably the best we've seen all season. It was muddy this morning, but we cleaned it right up."

Hasting nodded. "Good, good, good," he mumbled.

The team listened to the crowd roar. They were not even out there and the crowds was already screaming their names. They all knew what it would be like once they left the locker room and exited the tunnel.

"Good crowd today," Holder commented. "Good crowd."

Marcus knew that Holder was rather nervous about this game. The loser of this game would go down in not only the league ranking, but the international ranking too. The Falcons were known as a good team and were not about to mess this up. Marcus knew that Wood was on the opposing team. He was not sure how this was going to go. Wood and he were both on the same skill level, but they also knew each other's moves and tricks. This could be either a good or a bad thing for the team. He just had not decided yet.

"Well, let's head out," Hastings said. He stood up and the rest of the team filed out behind him.

As the team exited the tunnel, the roar of the crowd grew. The Falcon's fans screamed and cheered, the United fans booed and yelled insults. This reminded Marcus of the Slytherin and Gryffindor games at Hogwarts. Since this was a Falcon home game, the Falcons had more supporters. This was one difference from Hogwarts. Usually Marcus was on the side that did not have a lot of supporters. This was a very nice change indeed.

He chanced a look at Wood. Wood had not changed looks at all since they last met on the Quidditch pitch. Heck, Wood even gave Marcus the normal respond: a glare. Things were back to normal.

Owen Marley was refereeing this match. He was an ex-Falcon Chaser. He always refereed the Falcon's home games. Marcus was not sure if he was trying to help the team or if he just wanted to get into the game for free.

"Captains, shake hands," Marley commanded.

Hastings and the United captain shook hands.

"Mount your brooms!"  
>Everyone mounted and kicked off. They formed a circle above Marley.<p>

Marley went over the chest that held the balls. He opened it up and the golden Snitch flew out. Both Seekers followed it with their eyes. Next, the Bludgers were released and they went zooming deep into the pitch. Marley put the Quaffle under his arm and mounted his own broom. He rose until he was even with the rest of the players. He threw the Quaffle up into the air and the game began!

The Chasers raced toward the Quaffle. Jamie took control and just as quickly threw it to Marcus, who caught it with ease.

"The Falcons take control of the Quaffle. Taubenfeld to Flint. Flint takes off toward the goals. He gets cut off by Chaser Williamson of United. Flint throws the Quaffle to Collins. Collins is flying without any trouble."

Marcus was rather mad that he got cut off, but was happy that he still managed to keep the Quaffle under Falcon control.

"Collins is getting closer to the goal post. United Beaters closing in on him. Hastings, of Falmouth, prevents that from happening. Oh, United Beater down! "

Marcus turned just in time to see one of the United Beaters crash into the ground below.

Jamie came up alongside Marcus and looked down. "That's going to hurt in the morning," he said. Jamie turned his attention to Carter. "We should flank him. Three's better than one, you know." He shot ahead.

Marcus followed. He was on Jamie's heals.

Carter saw them and the three Chasers began to pass the Quaffle back and forth. They were too quick for the United Chasers.

"Collins, Taubenfeld, Flint. Back to Collins. Collins to Flint. Flint approaching the Keeper."

Marcus was within scoring range now. Wood was coming out to meet him. Marcus knew that he could not use his eyes to line up; that was how Wood knew where people were going to score. Marcus looked the middle goal. It would be the easiest to fool Wood with. Now, he had to choice between right and left. Marcus was not sure if Wood knew that he was left handed or not. Right would be the safest.

Marcus raised his arm for the right. Wood went that way, leaving Marcus a clear shot at the left. He threw it quickly before Wood could notice what his real intentions were. The Quaffle went it.

"FALCONS SCORE!"

Even through the cheers, Marcus heard Wood swear quite loudly.

Jamie turned back and yelled to Wood, "Just because you are here, doesn't mean you belong here!"

Wood swore again.

The game continued like that for the next half hour. The Falcons were up by forty. If they kept up with this, the game was theirs. However, they could not ease up. People may had called this running up the score, but in the world of Quidditch, nothing of that nature existed.

Carter threw Marcus the Quaffle. He shot through the pitch. He looked for his fellow Chasers; he could not find them. He saw that out of the corner of his eye that they were caught in traffic. He had been solo before, no big deal. He was in scoring range. He was getting ready to score.

BAM!

A Bludger had hit him on his right side. He felt a couple of ribs break. It hurt worse than normal. The damage from where he had got hurt last year was on his right side, right where he had just got hit.

Carter, who had gotten free of traffic, rushed to Marcus's side. Marcus threw his the Quaffle.

SMACK!

Marcus got hit hard in the face with a second Bludger. He did not understand this. Was this pick on Marcus day or what?

Carter scored.

Seconds later, Raine caught the Snitch.

An hour later, Marcus was coming out of the medical tent. The Healers had cleaned him up within a few minutes, but had made him stay longer because of his concussion. Holder was waiting.

"You good?" Holder demanded.

Marcus nodded. "Yeah."

Holder nodded. "Good job today."

"Thanks."

Holder smiled. "Now, quit standing here and talking, hit the showers! You stink, boy!"

Marcus disappeared into the locker room, knowing that he truly belonged here.


	17. Chapter 17: Possibility

Chapter Seventeen: Possibility

Disclaimer: All characters belong to J.K. Rowling.

Author's Note: This fanfiction is going to be different from my other stories. This begins during Chamber of Secrets and goes up until three years after the Dark War. So, pay attention the time, so you don't get confused. Some of the chapters are other Marcus Flint/Katie Bell stories, just with more changes and deleted scenes added.

Time: Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire

Genre: Romance, Drama, and Friendship

Rating: PG-13

**To Dana, who requested a chapter explaining what was wrong with Marcus. Well, here it is. It's not my favourite chapter, but Dana claimed that it needed to be in here somewhere. **

Marcus leaned back against his tall, black mare. She was a rather temperamental horse, but was gentle as a lamb with him. Witch only fully trusted Marcus alone. He rescued her from slaughter. His old horse had just been put down a few days before his sixteenth birthday. He and his dad had gone to an auction to find a new horse. Witch fought every handler there. However, when Marcus reached to touch her, she became gentle. They had gotten her for rather cheap and she had been just as difficult since then. If they had not bought her, it would have been very likely that she would have been turned into glue.

"Witch, what am I to do?" he asked the horse as he petted her nose. "Huh, girl?"

The horse leaned into his hand and snorted.

"There's a possibility that this could change everything." He touched the horse again. "Of course, you probably have no idea what I am talking about, but it doesn't really matter."

Witch snorted once again.

With one final pat, Marcus let himself out of the barn lot and walked up to his house. He really did not want to do this, but he had to.

Two hours later, Marcus sat in the waiting room at St. Mungo's Hospital. He felt rather out of place here. Everyone else in the waiting room either had minor magical injuries or had a mask of worry on their face as they waited for the news of a loved one. He was just here for a check-up. He had to wait here until the secretary had sent it down to the Artifact Accidents department. At least he did not have to walk stairs.

"Marcus Flint," the secretary called.

Marcus stood up and went over to her.

She threw a green clipboard at him rather hard. He caught it. "Good, Quidditch players should be able to catch," she said coldly. "Take that with you. Healer Caine is waiting on you."

He could have something to the witch, but he kept his mouth shut. He really wanted to say something though, but, no, he could not, he must not.

He left the waiting room and walked down the long hallway to Artifact Accidents and opened the door. Last year, he had been a patient here still; last year, at this time he had just come out of a six week coma. He walked to the front desk and handed Heidi, the welcome witch, the clipboard. He pretty much knew everyone in this department if not by name, but by sight.

Heidi took it from him with a smile. "Check-up?"

Marcus nodded.

She sat the clipboard down on her desk. "Well, I can honestly say you look better now than you did this time last year."

"Should I take that as a good thing?"

"Maybe."

"Just maybe?"

Heidi handed him another clipboard. "Yes, just maybe. Now, go fill these out."

Marcus took the clipboard and went over to one of the uncomfortable waiting room chairs. He did not understand why they put such uncomfortable chairs in waiting rooms. People here already felt terrible enough, why did they insist on making them suffer even more? He sighed and began to fill the papers out. There was some things that he really did not understand.

The second round of paperwork took about fifteen minutes. After that, he had to wait another fifteen minutes to get into the Healer's office.

A female Healer-in-training lead him down a rather wide hallway. The walls were off-white and contained photographs of current and past Healers. Marcus watched as the photographs studied him. It was as if they were trying to determine what exactly was wrong with him.

The Healer-in-training held a door open on the right for him.

Marcus stepped in. He had not been in this room before. It had the same set up as the rest of the examination rooms. There was medical things hanging on the walls and on lying on the counter, a bright light over a table, a chair in the corner, charts, and ugly wallpaper.

The Healer-in-training motioned him to the table. "Sit down, please."

He walked over and did as he was told.

The Healer-in-training looked over his chart. Then, she took his temperature, blood pressure, checked his oxygen level, checked his heart rate and pulse. "Stand up," she instructed him. "I need to measure you and weigh you."

Marcus stood up and went over to the scale. The Healer-in-training weighed him and measured him.

"You've gained weight," the Healer-in-training said.

Marcus did not answer.

"That's a good thing. You'll still not up to you are still not up to what you weighed last year, but it is progress."

Marcus still did not respond. He did not like it whenever people commented on what he had been like before the accident. Before the accident, he had weighed close to two hundred pounds. It had not showed on him, because it was pure muscle. Also, he was six foot four inches. Now, he was lucky to weigh one hundred and eighty pounds.

"Are you okay?" the Healer-in-training asked.

Marcus nodded. "Yeah."

The Healer-in-training headed toward the door. "Good. I did not want to have you dying on me."

Marcus knew that comment was met to be a jock, but he did not find it all that funny. He knew that last year shortly after he had been brought in, that his heart had stopped beating and he had quit breathing for a few minutes. If the Healers had not acted when they did, he would not be sitting here today.

The door opened again and Healer Caine stepped in. Healer Caine was an older healer who closely resembled Father Christmas. He also acted a bit like Father Christmas too. He pulled a stool over next to Marcus and sat down on it. "Now, let's see what we can do for you." He began to flip through Marcus's file. "Well, compared to this time last year, you are in a lot better shape." He turned the page. "There's just a few things I want to check on."

"Such as?"

"Well, I want to look at your right side for starters."

"And?"

"That's probably it for now." Caine got off the stool and stood next to Marcus. "I need you to take your shirt off and lay down."

Marcus pulled his blue T-shirt over his head. He knew that Caine was watching and making sure that all of his muscles were working properly and what not. Once his shirt was off, he laid back. Caine ran his hands over Marcus's right side gently for several minutes.

"Hum," Caine said after many minutes of silence.

"What?"

"Correct me if I am wrong, but most of the damage was done along your rib cage. You're right wrist was broken and had to be manually fixed. You was also treated to internal bleeding which also had to be manually treated. You had three broken ribs. You also suffered from a great amount of muscle bruising," Caine paused. "You were also ill before going to practice. You'll illness was later determined to be your appendix, which was removed. Correct?"

Marcus nodded.

Caine took a deep breath. "There's a huge possibility that you may never fully recover from it."

Again, Marcus nodded. He knew that this had been coming.

"You also suffered from head trauma as well. According to your teammates, your hit struck the side of the station."

Marcus did not respond.

"That alone does a vast amount of damage. Do you have trouble remembering things?"

"Such as?"

"Things that you always knew how to do, but can no longer remember the steps needed to accomplish that task."

Marcus bit his lip. That was an everyday occurrence. It was also something that he did not openly discuss in front of people.

"I'm going to take that as a yes." Caine rested his hands on his knees. "Well, I can say that's going to get any worse, but it's also not going to get any better."

Marcus was pretty sure that he could live with forgetting a few things. However, he had a feeling that was not the worst of it.

Caine ran his hands down Marcus's side again. "Do you have a plan besides playing Quidditch?"

"Um, yeah. I'm taking veterinary science courses."

"Oh, really? Good field." Caine took his hands off Marcus's body. "I'm asking because you probably will not be able to play Quidditch professionally after your thirtieth birthday."

Marcus knew that most Quidditch players were lucky to make it to that point.

"Not because you'll be tired of it and want to take another career, but you're body will just not be able to handle it. What I am trying to get at is, you are going to be in pain for the rest of your life. What is saving you now is the fact that you were only seventeen when it happened. However, no one's body can ever recover from something like that. You may not feel it now, but you will in a few years time. I just wanted you to be aware of that."

"What sort of damage is there?" Marcus asked sitting up.

Caine breathed in deep. "There's a very good possibility that your ribs are beyond healing ability. If you get hit in your ribs, mostly your right side, you will, most of the time, suffer from one or more broken ribs."

"Can it be prevented?"

"I'm going to send in a request to the league for you to wear a guard all times around you're ribs while you are on a broom until you retire."

**We return to Katie and the events happening at Hogwarts for the final chapters that will take place during Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. **


	18. Chapter 18: Girls' Night Out

Chapter Eighteen: Girls Night Out

Disclaimer: All characters belong to J.K. Rowling.

Author's Note: This fanfiction is going to be different from my other stories. This begins during Chamber of Secrets and goes up until three years after the Dark War. So, pay attention the time, so you don't get confused. Some of the chapters are other Marcus Flint/Katie Bell stories, just with more changes and deleted scenes added.

Time: Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire

Genre: Romance, Drama, and Friendship

Rating: PG-13

**The next two, maybe three chapters will focus on Katie. I got this idea from working security desk with my friend during an university dance. **

Katie slammed her book shut causing Leanne to jump. She took a deep breath and exhaled.

"Problems?" Leanne inquired as she quietly closed her own book.

"I can't focus" Katie exclaimed.

"Why?"

Katie shrugged. "To be honest, I have no idea." She really did not know what she could not focus on her schoolwork. Normally, she could do her homework without any problems, but this week had been very different. She did not understand why it was happening. She normally did not have off weeks.

"Maybe you're just having an off week," Leanne suggested.

Even though, off weeks did not happen very often for Katie, it was still a possibility. "Yeah, maybe."

Leanne stood up and gathered her books. "Well, there's no point in studying if you can't focus."

Katie raised her eyebrow. "Meaning?"

Leanne started up the stairs. "I think it's time for a girl's night out."

Katie gathered her own things and rushed after her friend. "You couldn't have read my mind any better."

Half an hour later, Katie, Leanne, Alicia, and Angelina were standing in the Gryffindor common room. They were unsure of what they were going to do. In order to have a girl's night out, they kind if needed to actually go out. That was the problem. Katie could not believe she was actually thinking of leaving Hogwarts grounds without permission. It was something her boyfriend would do, but not her.

"How do we get out?" Angelina asked.

"Ask Fred and George?" Alicia suggested.

Katie shook her head. "That would be too risky."

Alicia looked back at her. "Why?"

"Because they would think that they would have to come, which would defeat the purpose of a girl's night out." Katie paused and took another breath. "They also have big mouths."

Angelina snorted and smirked. "That is very true."

Leanne looked as if she was deep in thought. "What about Marcus?"

Once again, Angelina snorted. "What good would Flinty boy do?"

"Well, he probably stuck off school grounds."

"And?"

"He probably told his sister."

Angelina snapped her fingers and her eyes lite up. "Finally, the boy has some use."

Alicia picked up her bag off of one the chairs next to the fireplace. "Well, let's go." She lead the girls toward the common room entrance. Katie, however, hung back. Alicia turned back. "Well, come on, Katie."

Katie bit her lip. "Question?"

The rest of the girls looked back.

"What?" Angelina inquired.

"How do we find Haley?"

The rest of the girls froze and came back. They sat down in the chairs and sofas that surrounded the fireplace. Each one looked as if they thought that girl's night out had been cancelled.

"That could be a problem," Leanne mused.

Angelina looked the younger girl in the eye. "Ya' think?"

Haley Flint sat across from her friend and fellow housemate, Miley Pucey. They were in the library doing a group Charms project. Personally, she thought that it was just met to be torture. At least, she was friends with one of her group members. Ginny Weasley was also in the group; she was not bad, but Haley just did not know her yet. The other member was Shane Harper, a fellow housemate. Harper was just a complete waste of space; he thought he was a big shot because he played Seeker on a summer league team.

Ginny came back with an armload of books. She slammed them down on the table, waking Harper from her nap. "This is all I could find."

Haley pushed a dark wave from her face and picked the book on top up. She examined it. "I think it will work."

Miley picked up another and looked at it. She did not say a word.

Ginny fanned her red hair out behind her. "They better."

Haley looked at her. "Why?"

Ginny took another book. "It's all the library has."

Haley looked back at the huge stack of books. "That is a very good point."

Miley was also staring at the books. She had a very bored expression on her face. She looked as if she would rather drink poison than be here. "Question."

Haley turned her attention from the book to her long time best friend. She and Miley had met close to twelve years ago from their brothers. Marcus and Adrian were coming back from youth Quidditch practice and Miley had been with them. Since then, the two girls had been stuck together like glue. "Hopefully we have an answer."

"Are we seriously going to read though all of these books tonight?"

Ginny stared at the stack. "Yeah, I guess if we did that we would be here all night."

"See, my point exactly," Miley said.

To the left of Ginny, Harper let a big snore out.

"So, how do we find her?" Leanne asked once again.

Angelina took a deep breath. "To be honest, I do not know if I could pick her out if I saw her."

"That's the thing, I don't think I could either," Alicia added.

"Well, we'll just have to stick together," Katie said. She lead the group to the opening. Hopefully, Haley would be somewhere besides the Slytherin common room.

Once out of the common room, the girls stood in a circle in the hallway. It was not curfew, so they did not have to hide from Filch. They did not know where to look for Haley at though. That still remained a major setback.

"What about the library?" Alicia suggested.

Angelina looked at her fellow Chaser. "She's a Flint. Do you really think she reads?"

"She's a straight "O" student," Katie said. "Marcus reads too."

Angelina gaped at her.

"Expect he does not read what he is supposed to," Katie added.

"That sounds better," Angelina said.

The group made their way to the library. The library itself was very crowded, because exams were drawing closer. This made it almost impossible to find someone, but not impossible. The bigger question was Haley in here.

Leanne stood on her tiptoes. "Is she here?"

Katie looked around the room and spotted a group of third years in the back. One of them had the same shape as Haley. She just needed the girl to turn around or look up from her book. "I think that's her." She pointed to the girl.

Angelina looked. "So, we're just going to march up to some stranger and ask her to help us break out of the castle?"

"No," Katie said.

"Then, what?"

"We're casually walk over there as if we were after a book or something, look at the girl, and if she is not her walk away. If it is her, we'll ask her for help."

"Got ya'," Angelina said.

The girls walked over toward the third years. As they got closer, Katie saw that Ginny Weasley was with them. Maybe she had the wrong group. As far as she knew, Haley and Ginny were not friends. There was another girl there was dirty blond hair and a sleeping dark haired boy. The brown haired girl had not moved. Once she had a clear sight of the girl, she saw that it was indeed Haley Flint.

"Haley," Katie said.

Haley's wavy, dark head shot up and turned around. "Oh, hey."

Katie leaned against the table. Ginny and the blond girl were watching her. "Did you know how to get out of this castle without getting caught?"

Haley did not blink. "Why?"

"Because we are having a girl's night out."

Haley slammed her book shut. "When do we leave."

"Now, if you can."

Haley turned to Ginny and the blond girl. "Ginny, Miley, you in?"

Both girls nodded.

"Sure can?"

Ginny, Miley, Haley stood up.

Alicia pointed to the sleeping boy. "Uh, what about him?"

Haley shrugged. "Just leave him there. He'll wake up at some point."

Twenty minutes later, the girls were sitting in a dancing club slash bar. There were a lot of people there. Most of them looked as if they were in their late teens, early twenties. It was a good cover. Three Broomsticks or one of the other pubs would had made them way too obvious. Here they could blend without any difficulty.

The music was blaring so loud that Katie's ear drums felt as were going to burst. She looked at the people, probably absolutely strangers, were grinding each other and other strange dancing. Most of them were probably drunk. Girls were wearing dresses that were shorter than Katie's top. It was all very strange and they were enjoying making fun of them.

Leanne nudged Katie. "Hotties at twelve o'clock."

Katie looked. A few booths in front of them four young men were eating fries and burgers. She did not recognize them, but they were very cute. Two of them had blond hair and the other two had dark hair. "Leanne, I have a boyfriend."

"I dare you to ask one to dance," Angelina said.

"Me too,"

Haley, Miley, and Ginny were smiling at her.

Katie finished her butterbeer and jumped up. She went back to the booth and grabbed the dark haired boy on the end. She did not bother looking at him. She just grabbed and pulled him out onto the dance floor. "Let's dance."

She let the music take control.

**To be continued in chapter 19. Katie will probably end up with three chapters... I am sorry if I made mistakes. I typed this while watching a movie. **


	19. Chapter 19: Let's Dance

Chapter Nineteen: Let's Dance

Disclaimer: All characters belong to J.K. Rowling.

Author's Note: This fanfiction is going to be different from my other stories. This begins during Chamber of Secrets and goes up until three years after the Dark War. So, pay attention the time, so you don't get confused. Some of the chapters are other Marcus Flint/Katie Bell stories, just with more changes and deleted scenes added.

Time: Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire

Genre: Romance, Drama, and Friendship

Rating: PG-13

**This chapter and the next chapter will focus on Katie... **

Katie danced against her partner. She still had not turned around to see who he was. She really did not want to know who he was. It was best to keep it a secret.

Meanwhile, Katie's friends were sitting in the booth discussing the scene. None of them thought that she would do what she was doing now. It was very un-Katie like behaviour. They did have to give the girl credit; she did pick a hot one.

Alicia studied the young man from behind. "I like what I see."

Leanne leaned in next to her. "Me too."

Angelina was staring and not saying a word.

Miley and Haley were not looking at the boy, but rather pretending to be fascinated in their iced teas. Ginny was staring at the bar tender.

"Wonder if he's single?" Alicia asked.

"A guy like that either sleeps around or is in a relationship," Leanne said. "That's how is always is."

The other girls gaped at her.

Leanne took a long drink from her butterbeer. "What? I read magazines."

Meanwhile on the dance floor, Katie could hardly keep up with the fast, upbeat song that was blasting out of the speakers. The lights was making her almost blind. She tried not to look at them. She could not help, but notice that the lights created a rainbow on the walls and the people around her. It was beautiful in a weird, twisted way.

She touched her partner's chest, still not looking at his face. His chest was board and solid muscle. He did not have muscle that bulked him up, but, rather, his muscles were slender. She could smell his aftershave. She was not what the scent was. She looked down at his hands. His fingers were long and slender. They reminded her of a musician's hands. She wondered if played. His hands did not look as if they had the texture of someone who did not work. They looked both rough and smooth at the same time. She did not fully understand how that could happen. But, hey, whatever floats your boat.

"So, what do you do?" she asked her mysterious dance partner.

"I'm a student," he replied. He had a deep voice, but it was not too deep.

"At Hogwarts?"

"No, at the University of Falmouth."

The University of Falmouth was one of the most top notch wizard university in the world. It was best known for its science and potions degrees. It also had a Quidditch team, the Falmouth Falcons, that was in the Quidditch League of Ireland and England and the International Quidditch Association League. It was very well known and respected.

"Oh," she said shocked. "What are you studying?"

"Veterinary science."

"That's what my boyfriend studies."

"Does your boyfriend know you're dancing with random strangers?" He was closer now. She could hear him breathing.

She did not turn around. Marcus! She had completely forgotten about him. She was pretty sure that he talked to another girls, but knew that he did not go up and flat out flirt with them. He was after all a teenage boy; sometimes his hormones got the best of him. "Um..." Katie said. "How do you I have a boyfriend?"

She could feel him shrug. "I just know."

Katie pulled away from him and turned around. She found herself looking into the soft brown eyes of Marcus Flint. "Well, look who it is."

Marcus flashed her a smile. "What? You grabbed me."

"I didn't know it was you."

"Why?'

She pointed to her friends. They were talking amongst themselves and did not notice that Katie's dance partner was Marcus. "They dared me to."

"Why?" He had raised a dark eyebrow.

"Because they said that I'm not fun."

"I see."

Marcus turned his back to them and kissed her. She returned the kiss. "Gotta make it look real," he whispered. "Are they looking?"

Katie looked over her shoulder at her friends. All of them, expect for Haley, was staring at them with their mouths open. She figured that Haley knew all along that her dance partner was Marcus. "Yes," she whispered back. She kissed him again.

"Good." He broke the kiss and strolled back over to his friends, who turned out to be Chris Derrick, Damon Knightly, and Jamie Taubenfeld.

Katie walked back over to the table.

"Well, that was interesting!" Leanne exclaimed as Katie slid back into the booth.

"I can't believe you kissed him," Alicia said amazed. "What's Marcus going to say?"

Katie took a long drink of tea. "What he doesn't know won't hurt him." She and Haley shared a look. It could be their little secret.

**This was kind of short. This chapter is not my favourite, but I needed to get Haley and Katie to bond in some form. The next chapter will be the last one that takes place during Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. **


	20. Chapter 20: Sorrow

Chapter Twenty: Sorrow

Disclaimer: All characters belong to J.K. Rowling. The underlined portions are taken directly from the novel, I do not own those parts. They belong to J.K. Rowling.

Author's Note: This fanfiction is going to be different from my other stories. This begins during Chamber of Secrets and goes up until three years after the Dark War. So, pay attention the time, so you don't get confused. Some of the chapters are other Marcus Flint/Katie Bell stories, just with more changes and deleted scenes added.

Time: Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire

Genre: Romance, Drama, and Friendship

Rating: PG-13

**This chapter will be focused on Katie. The next chapters will be divided will feature both of them. This will be the last chapter to deal with Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. **

On the eve of the Third Task, Katie found herself oddly restless. She could not sit still. She knew that something bad was coming. That night at the Yule Ball, she had tried to bring it up with Marcus, but he kind of shook the subject off. He knew what was coming, even if he did not want to tell her. A storm was coming and when it broke the world would suffer in sorrow.

She walked over to her canopy bed and opened her Ancient Runes book. It was exam week and this was her last test. She had done pretty well so far and did not want to blow this last one off. However, she found that she could not focus. She shoved the book aside and picked up her mobile. She needed to talk to Marcus. She knew that he was more likely to answer a text instead of a phone call.

_Katie: Hey, something is wrong. _

She typed into the phone. She sat the mobile aside and waited. She did not have to wait long before her phone vibrated.

**Marcus: What? You woke me up. **

Katie smiled. His texts to some may appear to be stand offish, but she knew that was just the way he functioned. She was glad that he texted instead of called. He did not like to be woken up when he was sleeping. He hated it especially when he had a hangover. He was acting normal, so he must not have one. Good, she hated it when he got drunk. She knew that he did not do it like he used to, but still...

_Katie: There's so much tension. _

**Marcus: That's probably just because of the games...**

She chewed on her lip. The games was probably part of the reason for the tension, but she knew that there was something else, something much more darker.

_Katie: Marcus, if there was something going on you would tell we, wouldn't you?_

There was pause, but that was enough for Katie. She knew that he knew something. She also knew that he would not tell her.

**Marcus: There's nothing going on. Look, I'm tired. I didn't get back from my game until seven this morning. **

_Katie: Okay..._

She waited a few moments to see if he was going to respond. She was not surprised that he did not. She knew that he had hit a nerve with him. It just proved her point. Marcus was hiding something from her. She knew that his temper was not just from lack of sleep, but it was from secrets. Secrets that she would find the answers to. She was half tempted to text him again. After a few moments of debating, she decided that she had better not push her luck.

She sat her mobile to the side and turned back to her Ancient Runes book. She would take the exam tomorrow morning and then go to the final task. Then, after that, she would work on getting answers out of Marcus. She knew that sweet talking him may work better than anything.

The next morning, Katie went to breakfast and sat with the Quidditch team, minus Harry, as usual. She never did fully understand why Harry did not hang out with the team besides practices and games. Then, again, she was not sure if she really wanted to know the answer to that question.

Fred stole a piece of hash brown off Katie's plate. "So, who are you betting on today, Miss. Bell?"

Katie looked at him. "What do you mean?"

"To take home everything," Fred said as he ate the hash brown.

Katie shrugged. "No idea." She went back to her breakfast.

"Well, now someone is moping," Fred commented. "Is it the boyfriend?"

Katie was getting sick of everyone blaming every moody day she had on Marcus. She just wanted her friends to accept him. Why was that so difficult? Without finishing her breakfast, she gathered her things and stormed out of the Great Hall.

A few of her classmates were already in the Ancient Rune's classroom studying for today's exam. She sat down in an empty desk in the middle of the classroom and opened her book. She tried to study, but could not focus. She knew that Fred and them did not mean any harm, but she could not take it anymore. She respected their relationships, even if she did not like whomever they were dating. She did not understand why they could not do the same thing for her.

She sighed. Whatever...

Ten minutes later, Professor Lucas, the young Ancient Rune's witch, entered the classroom and pasted out the exams. Katie looked at it. The exam contained runes that she could do in her sleep. This was going to be a piece of cake. She smirked. Marcus was also skilled at Ancient Runes. Well, at least her friends could not say he was stupid. She finished the exam within an hour.

Later that night, Katie sat between Angelina and Alicia in the bleachers at the Quidditch pitch. The twins sat in front of them with Lee and Leanne sat behind her with a couple of girls from their year. Everyone from Hogwarts was excited about this final task, because Hogwarts was a contender to win the entire thing.

Katie noticed that her friends, the Quidditch ones anyway, were staring at the pitch. Instead of the smooth surface of the Quidditch pitch, there was a giant, plant-like maze. The maze's leaves where moving even though there was no wind. It was kind of creepy.

She watched as the champions walked out onto the field. Each one emerged from each of the four Quidditch tunnels. She was happy to see that Harry and Cedric were emerging from the Gryffindor and Hufflepuff tunnels. Fleur came from the Ravenclaw tunnel and Krum came from the Slytherin tunnel. She cheered with the rest of the crowd as the champions gathered outside of the maze. Each looked very nervous.

Professor Moody, Professor McGonagall, Professor Flitwick, Hagrid, and Ludo Bagman came walking across the pitch. They said a few words to the champions and all but Bagman left.

"Ladies and gentleman, the third and final task of the Triwizard Tournament is about to begin! Let me remind you how the points currently stand! Tied in first place, with eighty-five points each-Mr. Cedric Diggory and Mr. Harry Potter, both of Hogwarts School!" Bagman paused for cheers. "In second place, with eighty points-Mr. Viktor Krum, of Durmstrang Institute!" He paused for more cheers. "And in third place-Miss. Fleur Delacour, of Beauxbatons Academy!" More cheers.

Bagman looked around at the crowd as he waited for the crowd's cheering to die down. Once it did, he pulled a giant whistle out from underneath his robes. "So...on my whistle, Harry and Cedric!" Bagman cried. "Three-two-one-"The whistle blew.

The crowd fell silent for moment as the two Hogwarts champions entered the maze. The silence remained until both champions were out of sight, then thunder exploded from the stands. The same thing was repeated for each of the other champions.

"So, we just wait?" Alicia asked.

Angelina leaned back. "Yep, might as well get comfortable."

Katie laughed.

Fifteen minutes later, red sparks emerged above the maze. People shot to their feet. No one knew what the sparks met. "One champion down," Cho Chang, who was sitting on the other side of Alicia, whispered. "I hope it's not Harry or Cedric."

Katie hoped that it was not them either.

Half an hour later, more sparks raised above the maze. Katie could not help but thinking that another champion was down. Cho was acting even more nervous. Katie did not blame her. If Marcus were in there, she probably would be acting the same way. The clock tower stuck signalling the hour and no more sparks had casted.

Leanne leaned over Katie. "How much longer do you think it will take?"

Katie shrugged. The only events had an hour limit. Maybe because this one was the last one, there was a longer time limit. She did have to admit that she was getting rather nervous about the length of this. Could something be wrong? She was going to say something, but a white circle appeared at the opening of the maze.

Harry and Credic landed on the ground with a thump. They were holding the trophy. Harry was the only one moving. Katie just thought that Credic had some sort of injury that prevented him moving. The Hogwarts supporters were screaming and cheering with joy. A group of important looking people had surrounded the champions. They had grim looks on their faces.

"Something's wrong," Cho whispered. "Something is very wrong."

Katie said nothing.

A scream filled the pitch. Fleur was standing next to Madame Maxine pointing at the ground. Now, Katie could see that Credic's parents were crying.

"NO!" Cho screamed as she fought through the crowd to Credic. "NO, PLEASE NO!"

Katie knew the truth them as the world of sorrow came to life in the night. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Professor Moody lead Harry away from the chaos.

The end of the term feast was normally at happy event at Hogwarts. This year, everything was cast in black to by tribute to Credic. Katie did not know why truly happened in the maze that night, but she knew that the truth would be known tonight. Dumbledore was not one to keep secrets from his students.

Dumbledore stood up and did not have to wait long for silence. "The end of another year." He paused and casted a look of sorrow toward the Hufflepuff table. The entire house had a look of anguish on their faces. "There is much that I would like to say to you all tonight," said Dumbledore, "but first I must acknowledge the loss of a of a very fine person, who should be sitting here," he gestured toward the Hufflepuffs, "enjoying our feast with us. I would like you all, please, to stand, and raise your glasses, to Cedric Diggory." 

The entire student body and staff did just that.

"Cedric was a person who exemplified many of the qualities that distinguish Hufflepuff house," Dumbledore continued. "He was good and loyal friend, a hard worker, he valued fair play. His death has affected you all, whether you knew him well or not. I think that you have the right to, therefore, to know exactly how it came about." 

He paused and looked directly at the students. "Cedric Diggory was murdered by Lord Voldemort." 

A wave of panic struck the hall. Vast whispers and mutters filled the hall. All this was to Katie was an eye opener. People knew that this was going to happen. There was some people who knew that the Dark Lord would return.

"The Ministry of Magic," Dumbledore continued, "does not wish me to tell you this...It is my belief, however, that the truth is generally preferable to lies, and that any attempt to pretend that Credic died as the result of an accident, or some sort of blunder of his own, is an insult to his memory." 

"Every guest in this Hall," Dumbledore, and his eyes lingered upon the Durmstrang students, "will be welcomed back here at any time, should they wish to come. I say to you all, once again-in the light of Lord Voldemort's return, we are only as strong as we are untied, as weak as we are divided. Lord Voldemort's gift for spreading discord and enmity is very great. We can fight it only by showing an equally strong bond of friendship and trust. Differences of habit and language are nothing at all if out aims are identical and our hearts are open. 

"It is my belief-and never have I so hoped that I am mistaken-that we are all facing dark and difficult times. Some of you in this Hall have already suffered directly at the hands of Lord Voldemort. Many of your families have been torn asunder. A week ago, a student was taken from our mist." 

"Remember Cedric. Remember, if the time should come when you have to make a choice between what is right and what is easy, remember what happened to a boy who was good, and kind, and brave, because he strayed across the path of Lord Voldemort. Remember Cedric Diggory." 

**Falmouth **

Marcus walked up the hill to his house with his head low. The wind and the rain was making it rather difficult to walk. He ducked into the basement entrance of his home and stripped his muddy boots and wet hoodie off.

"You really need to get something waterproof," his dad said from the couch.

Marcus stepped into the basement den. He looked at the north wall which had a row of built in fish tanks. The tanks were filled with various marine life. "I do. It wasn't raining when I left." He paused and looked at his dad. "What are you doing here anyway?"

Brad stood up and went over to his son. His face was grim. "He has returned. Do you understand?"

Marcus froze and nodded. "I understand."

**Thanks for all of the reviews, favourites, and alerts that I have received so far. I don't know when the next chapter will be up. I start a new semester on Jan. 18. I'll try to have one up soon,, but I want to write a few stories for Valentine's Day before doing another chapter here. **


	21. Chapter 21: Bury Me Alive

Chapter Twenty-One: Bury Me Alive

Disclaimer: All characters belong to J.K. Rowling. The underlined portions are taken directly from the novel, I do not own those parts. They belong to J.K. Rowling.

Author's Note: This fanfiction is going to be different from my other stories. This begins during Chamber of Secrets and goes up until three years after the Dark War. So, pay attention the time, so you don't get confused. Some of the chapters are other Marcus Flint/Katie Bell stories, just with more changes and deleted scenes added.

Time: Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

Genre: Romance, Drama, and Friendship

Rating: PG-13

Marcus sat down on the wooden seat on the log deck of his sky resort like home and stripped his wet, muddy boots off. He was getting rather sick of the rain. This winter it had been snow, now it nothing but rain. He wished that the rain would just crawl into a hole and die. The lake below his home was out of its banks. It would never reach his house because the house was located on a hill. Nevertheless, it was sort of nerve racking.

Lord Voldemort would never be like the lake contained to one small valley. No, the Dark Lord was going to spread his power. The question was when. When was this going to happen? No one seemed to have an answer, but all knew that it was just a matter of time. The Dark Lord was a ticking bomb just waiting to blow up. When he did, all Hell would break lose.

Marcus walked into his home in his sock feet. It was going to be a very long war.

He had not been sent on an assignment for the Order yet. Mostly because he was still only eighteen and he was a Quidditch player. He hated his youth. He had been youngest in his year and Hogwarts and was the youngest member of the Order. He was so young that no one took him seriously. In fact, he would not be nineteen until July sixteenth, a whole month from now.

Yeah, it sucked.

He walked up stairs and stripped off his wet clothes. In their place, he put on gray sweatpants and an orange T-shirt. He wondered into the kitchen in search of food. He always either had a lot or food or none at all. He was hoping that today would be one of the those days in which he actually had food in the house. It was rather questionable. He was not sure when he last went to the grocery store. He opened the cabinets and found a few food items. He settled for bowl of cereal. It was better than nothing.

Eating, he went into the living room.

His home was rather open. The kitchen and dinner room were pretty much the same room and arches separated the living room from them. The entire home, with the exception of the kitchen, game room, basement, and four bedrooms , was done in a wood-like way. He was not sure if it was actual wood and he was not going to question it. The ceilings in the home were rather tall and a giant window covered the front of the house that over looked the lake. Down the hall was two bedrooms and a bathroom. At the end of that hall, there was a door that lead to an indoor swimming poor and hot tub. Down the wide hall on the other side of the living room was a laundry room in the corner of it and a long bench for unknown reasons. To the right of the laundry room there was library. On the right side of the hall, there was door that lead to a two car garage. Next to the door to the garage, there was a set of stairs that lead to a game room with two balconies, a kitchenette, and a small bathroom. The upstairs of the house consisted of an open loft and four bedrooms that each had their own private bathroom. Outside the house there was deck that stretched about half way around the home. One the backside of the house, there was another pool and hot tub. Over the hill, behind the pool and hot tub was a medium size barn and a large horse field.

Marcus flipped on the large, flat screen television and began to flip through the channels. He was glad that wizards had gained access to this and were even making their own programs. He stopped on a Muggle horror movie. Even though they were very predictable, he found them rather enjoyable. He was not sure why, but he just did. He took a bit of cereal as the blonde-haired person died.

Oh, well, she was stupid and weak.

He changed the channel. He was still wondering if he was doing the right thing, but joining the Order. The members always made a big deal about friendship and how friends should not betray friends. Wasn't he doing the same thing? He had a lot of friends who had parents or relatives for Death Eaters. Heck, his father's sister, Chelsea, had been married to a Death Eater for eight years. Yes, Walden Macnair was he uncle. He just was not sure how to deal with this. He knew that he was doing the right thing, but still, it left him with doubts. He felt as if he was being buried alive.

He heard someone come in by Floo Powder. He turned and saw his mother emerging from the fireplace. Jasmine Flint was tall and slender with the same brown eyes as Marcus. She had long- brown curly hair and almost always wore purple robes. She had a motherly look, but was also a fierce Auror. She was responsible for putting thirty Death Eaters in Azkaban during the last Dark War. She would have put more in, but she had given birth to all of her children, but two (Haley and Bryan), during the war. She also lost her first husband and had gotten remarried during the war too.

She walked over to her son and looked at the TV. "Barany, huh? You do know that is a children's show?" Her eyes were filled with laughter.

Marcus looked at the television. He had not known he stopped on a preschool station. He turned it off. "Um.."

Jasmine laughed.

Marcus stood up and put his bowl in the kitchen sink. "Um, why are you here?"

Jasmine stopped laughing. "I need to show you where Headquarters is."

Marcus stood up straight. "Headquarters?"  
>"For the Order of the Phoenix. In order to come to meetings, you kind of need to know where the meetings are being held."<p>

"Oh. Where is it?"

"London." Jasmine looked her son's outfit. "You need to change."

Marcus sighed and went upstairs. He through on jeans and navy-blue button down shirt and a black robe. He placed dragon hide boots on his feet and shoved his wand into his robe pocket. He went back downstairs.

Jasmine was waiting. "Ready?"

Marcus nodded.

A few minutes later, mother and son Apparated outside a rundown Muggle street in London. Marcus watched as he mother reached into her pocket and handed him a piece of paper. He took it from her.

"Read it and memorize it," she said quickly.

He looked at it and saw that it was written in narrow handwriting. _"The headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix may be found at number twelve, Grimmauld Place, London."_ He was about ready to tell his mother that he had finished it, but could not for the paper had vanished. He looked up and saw the wedged between two houses was another house.

Jasmine smacked his arm. "Come on," she said as she ushered Marcus into the house.

He went in and followed her down the long hallway filled with the heads of dead house elves. He had heard of families doing this, but he never actually seen one. It was kind of creepy. They passed a curtained wall and he could hear someone muttering through it. He paid no mind to it.

At the end of the hallway, there was a closed door. Jasmine opened it and motioned Marcus to come in. Inside, there was a kitchen with about twenty people sitting at a long table. He knew most of them. There was his father, Molly and Arthur Weasley, Bill Weasley, Kingsley Shacklebolt, Remus Lupin, Tonks (she had been a few years ahead of him at Hogwarts), Mad-Eye Moody, Professor Snape, and Professor McGonagall. He also saw Sirius Black. He was rather surprised at that one.

Sirius was staring at him. The last time Marcus had seen Sirius in person was when Marcus had been five. "Well, you've grown up."

The group laughed.

Meanwhile, Katie walked into Marcus's house. She was supposed to meet him there so they could go out to dinner. She was supposed to have been there at six and it was now six-fifteen. Whatever, he probably was not even ready yet or had even started to get ready.

She listened. The house was quite, too quite. "Marcus!" she called as she wondered around. She did this for fifteen minutes. She even went out to the barn to look for him.  
>There was no one there.<p> 


	22. Chapter 22: Not Enough

Chapter Twenty-Two: Not Enough

Disclaimer: All characters belong to J.K. Rowling. The underlined portions are taken directly from the novel; I do not own those parts. They belong to J.K. Rowling.

Author's Note: This fanfiction is going to be different from my other stories. This begins during Chamber of Secrets and goes up until three years after the Dark War. So, pay attention the time, so you don't get confused. Some of the chapters are other Marcus Flint/Katie Bell stories, just with more changes and deleted scenes added.

Time: Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

Genre: Romance, Drama, and Friendship

Rating: PG-13

**The next two or three chapters will focus on the actual relationship of Marcus and Katie. A lot of drama will occur...**

**Two hours later, Marcus left the Order meeting. He was still very unsure of this whole deal, but the meeting had made him feel a little better. He at least knew that he would not be working for a bunch of Ministry of Magic people (even though the biggest part of them did work for the Ministry; heck, he actually did too). **

**He pulled out his mobile to check the time. It was only nine o'clock, still rather early. Maybe he would text Katie to see if he wanted to hang out. He froze. Katie, he had forgotten about their date tonight. Oh, snap. He could not tell her where he had been either. He took a deep breath. This was going to be a rather interesting conversation. **

**~***~Katie was sitting in her room at home reading a rather long novel. It was a good novel, but it never seemed to end. She still very upset with Marcus. He still had not called her or even texted her. She just wanted something from him, anything. She turned the page. She felt as if he was distancing himself from her. She was starting to think that he did not want to be in a relationship with her. It was all just messed up. **

**She looked at her mobile. Still nothing. Maybe she was putting on the poor girlfriend act. She thought for a moment; no, she had every right to be concerned. Had this been a few weeks ago during Quidditch season, she would have been very worried. During Quidditch season, no news from Marcus met that he was hurt. **

**This was not the first time, he had broken date night. In fact, he was canceling with her on a pretty regular basis. It was getting old very quickly. She understood that he had a life outside her and that he wanted to hang out with his friends. She also knew that he was busy with university work and Quidditch. Even with all of that, he still had been a good boyfriend. He always made time for her and know he was not. Katie did not understand what had happened between them. Maybe, they were losing the spark. **

**Even when they were together, it was not like the old days. The chemistry that had driven them together was not longer there. No matter what they did, it was not enough. Nothing would ever be enough to fix this. **

**Maybe she was being a little over dramatic…**

**But, still, she did deserve the truth. Marcus always brushed the discussion of Lord Voldemort's return and the upcoming storm off. Yeah, she knew that he had family that would be involved it in, but Katie had at least thought that he might want to talk about it. It might help him deal with it. That was the main problem, he was not dealing. Instead he was locking himself away from it. **

**If this had been going on for a few days, she would had just thought that he was in a rough spot. However, this had been going on for months now. It was getting old and she was getting sick of it.**

**Katie slammed her book shut. She really did not want to deal with this right now. In fact, she did not even want to speak to him. **

**Her mobile vibrated. Marcus's number light up the screen. It was a call, not a text. Normally, she would be glad that he called after a broken date, but not this time. It was not enough. She pressed ignore. She wanted him to stew a little bit. **

**Marcus threw his mobile on his bed. It landed with a thump that did not sound healthy for the phone. He sunk down on the floor next to the bed in a sitting position. He ran his fingers through his short dark hair. She was mad at him. He knew that if this had been the first time, she would be more understanding, but now there was no chance. **

**He sighed. He was in danger of losing someone he cared about, and even loved , very quickly. It hurt and he did not know how to fix it. **

**He knew that he could go over to Katie's, but he knew that she wanted space. If he went over there, he would more then likely end up with a sore cheek. He did not want to get slapped today. **

**He grabbed his mobile off the bed and dialed her number again. **

**~***~ Katie heard her mobile ring again. She looked out the window of her second story window and picked it up. It was Marcus. **

"**Hey," he said. He waited as if he was waiting for her to say something. "Look, I'm sorry."**

**Katie walked over to the window and stared out at the brook that ran behind her house. She could feel a lump growing in her throat. She did not say anything.**

"**Katie?" He sounded anxious and concerned. "Are you still there?"**

**She could feel the tears threatening to spill. "Marcus, I can't do this anymore." "What do you mean?" The tears were spilling down her cheeks. "Whatever you have to say, it is not enough." **

"**Ka-."**

**She hung up the mobile with a sob. **


	23. Chapter 23: It Will Rain

Chapter Twenty-Three: It Will Rain

Disclaimer: All characters belong to J.K. Rowling.

Author's Note: This fanfiction is going to be different from my other stories. This begins during Chamber of Secrets and goes up until three years after the Dark War. So, pay attention the time, so you don't get confused. Some of the chapters are other Marcus Flint/Katie Bell stories, just with more changes and deleted scenes added.

Time: Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

Genre: Romance, Drama, and Friendship

Rating: PG-13

**Bold: Flashback**

**The next two or three chapters will focus on the actual relationship of Marcus and Katie. A lot of drama will occur...**

**My formatting didn't take. The flashbacks are divided like this...So, hopefully it works out**

Marcus listened to the dial tone. He was unsure of how to take that conversation. Where they actually over? He turned his phone off and went over the sliding glass door that lead to the second floor balcony. Had he just got dumped? Some many questions ran through his head, but, yet, he had no answers.

The sun was shining for once. It was as if the storm had broken, but today he wanted to darkness of the storm around him. The sky was a cloudless blue with birds flying in a carefree manner. The lake was calm with no ripples. He could see that some of his neighbours were fishing off its muddy banks. It was a world that belonged in a fairy tale. It was a fairy tale that did not belong in.

After a few more seconds of baking in this prefect world, Marcus walked back inside. Not even a drug as strong as morphine would stop this pain. There was no stopping this storm. No, he would just have to fight for her. The big question was: how did he fight for love? He had girlfriends before Katie, but never really fought to keep the relationship alive. Those relationships were not relationships, but more of flings. They were just like a high that quickly faded.

So, how do you fight for someone you love? Truthfully, he had no idea how to deal with this. He had nothing. Nothing, but a lot of pain.

Katie sat her phone on her dresser and walked back over to her bed. She tried to read again, but found that she could not make herself. She was fighting back tears again, but made them stop. She would not spill anymore rain over Marcus Flint. He just was not worth it. In fact, he was not even worth her thinking about him.

She placed her book on the floor and rolled back onto her back. She rested her hands on her stomach and stared at her off white ceiling. Nope, she was not going to think about him any more. She closed her eyes and allowed herself to enter dreamland.

"**That's for me to know and you to find out."**

**Marcus looked confused. **

**Katie drew her legs up. Marcus jumped back thinking that she was going to kneel him in a bad spot. However, Katie had other intentions and without his knowledge, he was going exactly what she wanted him to do. She sit up quickly and shoved him from the top bunk. He landed on the floor with a loud thump. **

**Just as he was sitting up, the door opened and Katie's father, Jim, stuck his head in. "What on earth on you two doing in here?" He had not noticed Marcus on the floor. **

"**Nothing," Katie said. **

"**That hurt," Marcus said at the same time. **

**Jim looked at Marcus on the floor and then at Katie. He shook his head on walked out of the room, closing the door behind him. **

**Marcus looked up at Katie. "He didn't even ask if I was okay."**

**Katie responded by throwing a pillow at him, which hit him in the face….**

…**Marcus walked back over and sat down near her. "So, is this the part where we make random small talk and/or make out?" **

**Katie nodded. "I think it is." She giggled. **

**Marcus banged his head against the wall. **

**Katie listened to the storm that was now in full rage. There was no hope of leaving now. She was stuck here with her lover. What did lovers do when they were alone together? **

**Oh, she knew. **

**But, they weren't't going there. She wanted to save herself and had told him this. He did not take it like she thought he would. She thought that he would have broken up with her, but he kind of seemed relieved when she told him that. She knew what his last girlfriend wanted from him and that she had pressured him into it. Maybe that was why he looked relieved.**

**She reached over and kissed him. "I love you." **

"**Love you too," he said as he kissed her back. **

**Just as the storm was cleaning the earth, Katie Bell was cleaning up Marcus Flint's soul. All of them were becoming one. **

**All were coming clean. **

…**Angelina looked behind Katie and saw Marcus. "I see you brought the troll with you."**

**Katie wished that her friends would get along with Marcus. "He's not a troll. He doesn't even look like one." This was very true. Marcus had no trollish features what so ever. Of course, he was freakish tall. He stood at six foot four. He looked like any other eighteen-year-old boy. **

**Marcus stood next to Katie. "So, did you miss me that much Johnson?"**

**Angelina glared at him. "No comment." She went back over to Fred. **

**Katie turned to Marcus. "Of course you would have some sort of comment."**

**Marcus shrugged. "Gotta keep up with her."**

**Alicia smiled at them. "Well, I'd best be getting back to George. It's nice to see you guys." She left. **

**Marcus had a thoughtful look on his face. **

**Katie was afraid to ask, but she knew if she did not, she would regret it. "What?"**

"**I think I'm starting to grow on Johnson."**

"**Why?"**

"**She wasn't so hateful toward me as she normally is." **

…**.Katie led the way into McDonalds. She watched as Marcus stared down the meal. He looked completely lost. **

"**What do you want?" she asked him. **

"**What are you getting?" he asked. **

"**A Big Mac." **

"**Most girls I know wouldn't touch a hamburger." He looked down at her expression. "What? You look shocked, why?"**

"**You know what a Big Mac is?" Katie asked. She was in disbelief that he knew that. Most wizards didn't know about a Big Mac, probably never even heard of one before. **

"**Yeah." **

"**Yeah." **

**Katie narrowed her eyes and put an accusing expression on her face. "Have you been here before?" **

"**In London, yes. In McDonalds, no." **

"**Then how did you know?" **

"**I know one thing and you seem shocked, Bell." **

"**Have you ever heard of a Big Mac?" **

"**Yeah, that's what we're discussing here." **

**She walked up to the cashier, ordered two Big Macs (to go), and looked at him. "Aren't you going to pay?" He handed her a roll of Muggle money and gave her the look that proclaimed: I don't know the Muggle money system. She rolled her eyes and counted out the correct amount. **

**While they were waiting on their food, Katie turned to Marcus again. "Seriously, how did you know about the Big Mac?" **

"**I just knew." **

**Before she could question him anymore, their food came and they exited the McDonalds. **

**Once they were outside Marcus turned to Katie. "Besides, there was a picture next to it." **

**If Katie hadn't been carrying their food, she would have slapped him. **

Outside the sky was starting to cloud up. Katie rolled over in her sleep so that she was facing the darkening world. A roll of thunder rumbled in the distinct and the lightening preformed a magnificent show outside the window. Within a few minutes, rain began to clink on the window. There would no more sunlight today. Even if it did come back, Katie would not see it. There would be on sunlight with her lover gone, everyday there would only be rain.

It had been a week since Marcus had heard anything out of Katie. He was still unsure if he should contact her or not. It sucked not knowing what to do. Since that day, it had rained everyday. The sun had not broken through the dark clouds.

He knew that there was nothing that was going to save them. No religion, no church, no miracle cure. There was nothing. The only thing that they had in common right now was that it was raining everyday and it would do so.

Why did he know this? Heck, it was England.

He grabbed his jacket off the chair. Well, he certainly was not going to sit here and think about what had happened. He was going to go have some fun.

Damon Knightly and Chris Derrick were waiting for him at the entrance of a popular wizard night club in the suburbs of Falmouth.

"Are you ready?" Chris asked once he saw Marcus.

Marcus looked at his long-time friend. "For what?"

"You're single and a professional Quidditch player," Chris explained.

"And?"

"It's time to get you back on the market."

Damon was a little bit better at the long term relationship stuff than Chris was. "Um, it's only been a week."

"So?"

"Don't you think he should wait a little longer?"

"Didn't he get with Katie within a matter of days after breaking up with Avril?"

Marcus loved how they was talking about him as if he was not even there. "That was different," he muttered.

"How so?" Chris asked.

"Avril was a b…."

"That's is very true, my friend," Chris was walking a little ahead of the other two now. "That is very true."

Marcus and Damon exchanged looks. Both were wondering how much Chris had to drink tonight. He clearly was not sober or even in his right mind. He was acting like they all did in the Slytherin common room during a party of some sort.

"Some one started the party early," Damon muttered.

Marcus watched his friend. "It looks that way." He looked up at the sky. Dark clouds were forming again. It looked like another storm was coming. Soon enough, rain began to fall from the heaven's.

Damon cursed. "Of course, we can't go a day without rain."

Marcus did not respond.

The three young men entered the club.

Katie picked up her mobile. Outside, the rain was hitting the window. She walked over to the window and dialed Marcus's. She bit her lip was she waited.

And waited.

And waited.

She stared out at the dark world and hung up. It had gone to voicemail.


	24. Chapter 24: Cry

Chapter Twenty-Four: Cry

Disclaimer: All characters belong to J.K. Rowling. The underlined portions are taken directly from the novel; I do not own those parts. They belong to J.K. Rowling.

Author's Note: This fanfiction is going to be different from my other stories. This begins during Chamber of Secrets and goes up until three years after the Dark War. So, pay attention the time, so you don't get confused. Some of the chapters are other Marcus Flint/Katie Bell stories, just with more changes and deleted scenes added.

Time: Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

Genre: Romance, Drama, and Friendship

Rating: PG-13

**This chapter and the following will focus on the actual relationship of Marcus and Katie. A lot of drama will occur...The war will start to play a main part in the story after this chapter **

Marcus took another shot. He was getting more and more drunk as the evening went on. That was his goal: to get drunk and forgot whatever stupid thing he did tonight. Beside him, Damon ordered another shot.

"So, do you think you'll remember what questions I ask you tonight?" Damon inquired.

Marcus looked at Damon. "Not chance." He took another drink. "Do you think you'll remember we had this conversation?"

Damon took a deep breath and sighed. "No way in hell."

Marcus stood up and smiled at the other young man. "That's what I thought."

Damon followed his friend's movements. "That's what I thought too."

Katie held on to her mobile. In a way, she was glad that Marcus had not answered. She did not know what she would have said if he had. She had a feeling that he did not miss her call on opposite. It rang to long. He had probably been in the shower or something. That was the only thing she could come up with.

She knew that since he was sighed with the Falcons that he avoided places where there was a chance that the press could show up. It was July and the American Final was over. Therefore, he was done with Quidditch until mid-September.

Maybe he had not just been in the shower. Maybe he had gone out. Was he with someone else now? Had he moved on? Was this her sign? Could she tell him not to move on?

Could she still tell him that she still cried for him?

A pretty girl with black hair came up beside Marcus. "Hello, there," she whispered. She batted her eyes at him.

Marcus pretended not to notice her.

She ran her hand up his arm and gave his bicep a squeeze. "You're strong."

He pulled his arm away from her. He was drunk, but not drunk enough to have random strangers touching him. He had to be gone before that happened.

She stood on her tiptoes, so she was somewhat level to him. "I'm Natalia."

Marcus could tell that she was very drunk. She had probably had more to drink than he had tonight. He did not offer his name.

"What's your name?" she asked as she slid her hand up his shirt. He could feel her running her hands over his stomach. "Um, I like what I feel."

Marcus snapped out of his daze. "Okay, to far there." He stepped back.

Natalia pouted. "Are you sure, baby?"

He did not respond.

Natalia got right in his face and batted her eyes. "Come on, now. I'm a lot of fun."

Marcus walked away from her. He did not have time for this nor did he want to mess with her. He did not like it when drunken girls or drunken people came on to him. It was annoying. He made his way across the dance floor. Damon caught his eye; he was dancing with a pretty redhead.

"I'm going to go," Marcus mouthed.

Damon nodded and turned his attention back to his dancing partner.

Marcus exited the club and Apparted home.

~***~  
>Katie bit the inside of her mouth. She had to do this while she had the nerve. She picked her mobile up and marched downstairs. She went into the kitchen and scooped up a fist full of Floo Powder off the mantle. She stepped into the fireplace and shouted, "Randolph Summer Manor!"<p>

Within seconds, she was standing in Marcus's open home. She looked down at the coffee table and saw his black mobile sitting there.

Marcus arrived home stumbling. He knew that he was going to wake up with a bad hangover tomorrow. It was going to suck.

He walked down the hallway to the open living room. He looked up to and saw Katie standing there. Her cheeks were shining and he wondered if she had been crying.

"Hey," she said. She walked over to him.

"Hey." He did not want to look her in the eye, because he did not want her to see how drunk he was.

She put her arms his wrist. "You're really drunk, aren't you?"

Marcus breathed in her sweet perfume. "Just a little bit."

She broke the embrace. "I can smell it on you."

He smiled and she kissed him.

"Your breathe smells terrible too."

Marcus laughed. "You're just full of love tonight, aren't you?"

Katie just grinned. She did not tell him how she could not go on without him. She could not make her tell him that he was always on her mind. She did not tell him how much she missed him and how she had cried from him. She did not nor could she tell him any of this. Instead, she just looked at him.

Also, she did not tell him, because she was pretty sure that he would not remember anything said tonight anyway.

**Hey, guys sorry if this is a bad chapter. It did not go the way I wanted it to. I am going to try to post a few chapters the first of March. That is my spring break and I am not planning on doing anything. Peace out until then. **


	25. Chapter 25: Save Me From Myself

Chapter Twenty-Five: Save Me From Myself

Disclaimer: All characters belong to J.K. Rowling. The underlined portions are taken directly from the novel; I do not own those parts. They belong to J.K. Rowling.

Author's Note: This fanfiction is going to be different from my other stories. This begins during Chamber of Secrets and goes up until three years after the Dark War. So, pay attention the time, so you don't get confused. Some of the chapters are other Marcus Flint/Katie Bell stories, just with more changes and deleted scenes added.

Time: Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

Genre: Romance, Drama, and Friendship

Rating: PG-13

**This chapter will focus on the actual relationship of Marcus and Katie. A lot of drama will occur...The war will start to play a main part in the story **

In a small town in southern Scotland, two hooded persons stepped out of the local pub. There was a slight stagger to their walk. Even though they were drunk, they appeared to be aware of what was going on. They knew their task.

They turned left and headed down a dark, forlorn alley. The two persons walked about ten meters into the alley before stopping in front of an ancient, crumbling building. One of the persons reached into his robe and pulled out a sheet of paper. He studied the paper and the building for several minutes.

"Is this it?" the second person asked.

The first person looked at the paper once again. "This is it." He shoved the paper back into his robe.

"Are you positive?"

The first person nodded. "I am."

The second person still had his doubts. "We have to be sure. If we are wrong, it will cost us greatly."

The first person turned to the second. "I am well aware of what the risks are."

The second person nodded. "I just can't risk it."

"I understand."

The second person reached toward the door and pushed it open. "Let us just hope this is right or there will be no one to save us."

~***~  
><strong>Hundred Valley, England <strong>

Katie Bell sat on the edge of her sleeping boyfriend's bed. Marcus had been very drunk last night and she had decided to stay with him to make sure that he was all right. She knew that when he woke up that he was going to have a killer hangover. She thought that he had stopped drinking, but apparently, he had not. She had a feeling that last night had not been the first. She wished that he would just quit.

He rolled over in his sleep. Now he was closer to her. She reached out and stroked his dark hair. It was getting long enough to start getting wavy. She thought that he looked childlike with his bangs off his forehead. He looked so young and innocent. His sleeping form made her almost forget everything that had happened over the last three weeks.

Almost, not quite.

Still sitting next to him, she allowed her eyes to dart around the room. She was looking for anything out of the normal. Katie knew that he was hiding something from her. She also knew that it had something to do with the return of He-Who-Must-Not-Be. His parents were Aurors for crying out loud. Surely, he knew something. She glanced back down at him.

Or he was involved.

Marcus breathed in deep. She looked at him very closely, studied him. She allowed her eyes to narrow. Was it possible? She watched him again. It certainly was not impossible.

Marcus opened his brown eyes. "Katie?"

She bent down so that he face was close to him. "I'm here."

He looked around. "Remind me not to do that again."

Katie kissed his forehead. She did not ask for clarification as to what he was referring to.

**Southern Scotland**

The two persons pushed the door open and stepped into the ancient building. The building reeked of must and decay. It certainly smelled like they were in the right place.

The first person threw back his hood and walked down the hallway. He only turned back once to make sure that his partner was following.

The second person was following, but he was very nervous. He felt as if the world was going to close in on him. He felt as if he was at the Reaper's door.

The first person reached the end of the hallway and pushed open a door. The door was rather heavy and ancient. It looked as if the door should be on the outside of the building instead of the instead. Maybe the heavy door was a warning. Maybe it was their sign that they should turn back.

The second person caught up to the first. He wanted to leave, but did not dare utter the words. He wanted to live to see another day.

The door revealed a dimly lit room. It was a similar style and layout to that of an Irish castle. The room was circular with furniture from another time era. The walls tapestries were falling and a few were lying on the floor. In the centre of the room, there was a chair facing the fireplace with someone in it. Two people were standing on either side of the chair.

The first person went over the chair and knelt in front of it. "My lord."

The second person hovered behind the next to the other two.

The person in the chair did not greet either of the newcomers. "I trust you have what I need."

The first person threw back his hood revealing long blond hair. "I have."

The person in the chair leaned forward revealing a snakelike face. "Do not fail me, Lucius."

Lucius nodded. "I have not, my lord. I swear."

The person in the chair leaned back into the shadows. "I hope not, my friend. It would be such a shame to lose you."

The other three exchanged nervous looks.

"Let me see what you have."

Without saying another word, Lucius reached into his robes.

**Hundred Valley, England **

Marcus felt terrible as he stood up. His head was pounding and his body felt strange. It felt like he was floating or walking on air. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Katie watching him. Whatever, he had said to her last night must have made her forgive him. It was either that or she felt sorry for him. The only thing that he could remember from last night was that he had a little too much to drink.

Little was putting it lightly.

Katie handed him his shirt. "Here."

He took it from her with a nod and pulled it over his head. His head pounded even worse as he did so. "I didn't do anything stupid last night, did I?"

Katie smiled. "Nothing more than usual."

"Great." He went over to his dresser and pulled out a pair of sweatpants.

"Do don't remember, do you?"

"Do I not remember what?" he asked as he pulled the pants over his boxers.

Katie studied Marcus as if she was trying to place her words carefully. "You promised to tell me what was going on."

Marcus snorted. "Now, I know for certain that I did not promise that."

Katie let a hurt look rush across her face. "Whatever, jerk."

He went over to her side. "It's not that I don't want to tell you, it's just that I can't."

She glared at him. "Why not?"

"It's complicated." He sat down next to her.

"Oh, just like how it is between you and Wood." Katie stood up. "Everything is so complicated with you!"  
>Marcus looked at the floor. "Katie, don't-"<p>

"Don't what?"

He looked back up at her. "Don't yell at me about it."

She sat back down. "Then, why won't you tell me."

Marcus stared into her blue eyes. "It's too risky for you to know."

"Why?"

"Because he could come after you if you knew."

Katie did not have to ask who he was. She already knew.

Marcus smiled at her. "If you must have an analogy, here it is. I hold the key of the world, but I am at the Reaper's door." He shook his head. "That did not make any sense."

Katie shrugged. "It was a nice attempt."

"Yeah, right," he muttered. He cleared his throat. "Anyway, I need someone to save me from myself." He watched as her face turned to confusion.

"Before I do something very stupid."

"What could be stupid about you are doing?"

"Oh trust me, there's plenty."

~***~  
><strong>London, England <strong>

Remus Lupin studied the night sky. It was darken from the gathering storm. It was not only a thunderstorm that was coming, but also something else.

Tonks came up behind him. "What are you looking at?"

"The face of Hell," Remus replied.

Tonks stared up at the sky. "I probably can assume you don't mean the weather storm."

He nodded. "That would be correct."

"It's like we are at the Reaper's door," she started in. "The only thing that can save us is ourselves."

"That is what the case is."

Tonks nodded as the rain began to fall.

"It's almost here and when it finally breaks shore, we had best be ready," Remus said.


	26. Chapter 26: Spellbound

Chapter Twenty-Six: Spellbound

Disclaimer: All characters belong to J.K. Rowling. The underlined portions are taken directly from the novel; I do not own those parts. They belong to J.K. Rowling.

Author's Note: This fanfiction is going to be different from my other stories. This begins during Chamber of Secrets and goes up until three years after the Dark War. So, pay attention the time, so you don't get confused. Some of the chapters are other Marcus Flint/Katie Bell stories, just with more changes and deleted scenes added.

Time: Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

Genre: Romance, Drama, and Friendship

Rating: PG-13

Haley Flint sat on the corner of the porch at her family's estate. She could hear her mother and father talking in the hallway. She did not want to go to London with them. They were not going to live at Number Twelve, Grimmauld Place, but it felt like it.

She did not understand why she even had to go. She thought that it was because her family believed that she would get into trouble by herself. Marcus and her half-brothers had done that. She was not them. Didn't they understand that? She did not screw up like them. Moreover, she was fourteen years old.

Jasmine and Brad stepped out. They looked nervous and tense.

"Ready?" Jasmine asked Haley.

Haley stood up and brushed the back of her pants off. "I guess."

Brad put his arm around her.

Haley looked up at her father. "I don't understand why I can't stay here."

"Because," Brad said.

"I'm not going to be like Marcus and use your absence as an excuse to get drunk."

"I know." Brad smirked. "He's the reason I have gray hair."

Haley and Jasmine laughed.

"And he better be at Number Twelve."

Haley knew that he brother was not in London. He did not want to really be in the Order. She had a strong feeling that he was only doing this to get their parents off his back. She knew that he would much rather be out doing other things. She was not sure what those things were, but she had a feeling. She loved him, but sometimes he just downright scared her.

Meanwhile, Marcus glared up at the clock and swore quite loudly. He jumped off the couch and onto his feet. Katie smirked. "Problem?"

"I'm late." He went behind the couch and grabbed his boots. He sat down on the hardwood floor and began to pull them on.

Katie leaned over the couch and watched him. Even though she was not happy, she had a small smile on her face. She knew where he was going and was not happy about it. He was going to that thing that he could not tell her about. It drove her crazy. She respected his privacy, but this was obviously at big thing. She did not believe that big things should be kept secret in a relationship. That was why they had broken up for a short period of time. If he had not spellbound her, she probably would have left him forever. "Going that thing you can't tell me about?"

Marcus stopped in the middle of tying his left boot. "You know I can't tell you."

"I know." She went around to him. "I was just asking."

He finished tying his boot. "Yes, I am." He stood up.

Katie briefly kissed him. "Just promise me one thing."

"What?"

"That you will be okay."

He nodded and Apparted.

Katie stood there. She had no desire to break the spell that he had put on her.

She was just being haunted by this thing that he could not tell her about. She really wanted to know. She was getting sick of asking and him not telling. He was probably getting sick of her asking too. She could not get the whispers out of her head; she just had to know. She wanted him to tell her who he really was. She was spellbound by him.

Brad, Jasmine, and Haley arrived outside of Number Twelve at the same exact moment that Marcus did. He nodded to his family, but did not say a word. He loved them, but sometimes they drove him crazy. It was one of the reasons he did not live with them anymore. His family came from a long line of Aurors and Healers. Even though he was working on the schooling needed to do animal healing, it was not enough. He felt that he would never be good enough. He wanted to be something more than what was expected from his family. He just was not really sure yet. All he knew was that he would break the spell that allowed him to be controlled by his family.

Haley caught his eye and smirked. She probably knew what he was thinking. She always seemed to know.

"Marcus," Jasmine said. She reached out and touched his arm. She was not as harsh as Brad. She just wanted to see her son happy. "Are you coming to dinner this weekend?" She had been asking the same question him for weeks. Each week, he said no.

He shrugged. "I don't know."

Jasmine nodded and smiled. "Just let me know."

"Um, okay." He did not say anything else. His dad was waiting for them at the open door.

Brad studied Marcus as he passed. Marcus watched him from the corner of his eye. If he was not mistaken, he thought that his dad wanted to reach out and touch him. The thought only lasted for a few seconds as the door closed and left them in darkness.

The darkness only lasted until Brad lit the tip of his wand. He led his family downstairs to the kitchen. Haley did not enter the kitchen. Instead, she went upstairs. Marcus watched as she climbed the long stairs. She kept looking back at him as if she wanted to say something. He did not understand why people looked like they wanted to say something, but never did. He just wished that people would speak their minds and tell the world who they really were.

Exactly, like he was not.

Haley went upstairs and entered the room that Ginny Weasley and Hermione Granger were calling home for the summer. She did not really know either one of them, but they had made her feel welcome. In fact, she might even call them friends.

"Hey," Hermione said as she looked up from a rather large spell book.

Haley sat down on the edge of the bed. She looked around. Ginny was not there. "Where's Ginny?"  
>"Um, I think she's in Ron's room."<br>Haley picked a lose thread on her shirt. "Oh." She looked back at Hermione's book. "Is that homework?"

Hermione closed the book carefully. "No, it's just a bit of light reading on charms."

Haley looked at the book again. It had to be at least a thousand pages. "Um, light. That book looks pretty heavy and deep to me."

Hermione smirked. "You sound just like everyone else."

"Is that a good thing?"

"It means you belong here."

"Oh."

Hermione leans in toward the other girl. "Fred and George have found a way to listen in on the meetings," she whispered.

Haley's eyebrows went up. "Oh, do tell."

"It's some sort of ears with some kind of charm on them. I'm not sure what they are called."

Haley nodded. "Are they going to use them today?"

"I think so." Hermione stood up. "We could go find out."

Haley was rather surprised. She always thought of Hermione as a bookish girl who never broke the rules. This was rather interesting. She was somewhat disappointed that the older girl had not gone on a rant about the twins poking in secretive things. She supposed that it had something to do with living in the house of secrets. She really wanted who this stranger was and what they had done to Hermione Granger. She wanted someone to tell her who they really were; she wanted someone who was not spellbound by the return of You-Know-Who.

Haley eyed Hermione. "I thought you were against this kind of behaviour?"

Hermione looked at Haley. "Oh, I am. I'm just going to make sure they don't do anything stupider than this."

"Oh, I see." Now, it was all clear.

Marcus sat in the back halfway listening to what Arthur Weasley was giving his report on. It was on some kind of a disturbance in Scotland. He really did not care about that. Similar things had been happening all over Great Britain. He did not understand why they were making such a big deal about this one. These people were not spellbound by the return on the Dark Lord, they were cursed. Saying that they were spellbound was putting it too lightly. It was as if they had no life outside of the Order.

He studied his right hand that was resting on his thigh. He could still see a faint outline from the break he had suffered from in his seventh year. It never healed properly and still pained him occasionally. He flexed his fingers and looked backed up at Arthur who was still dooming on.

Seriously, how much did he have to say on the subject?

Five minutes later, Arthur sat down and Snape got up. Great, Marcus did not even really pay attention to him when he had him at Hogwarts. He glanced back down at his jeans, and then leaned back against his hard chair. He had better at least make it look as if he was paying attention.

He had years of that under his belt, both with his dad and at Hogwarts. He sat back and let the games begin.

Haley sat down on the floor outside of the kitchen. Fred and George were attempting to coax their charmed ears under the door. She did not know what they were called, but they were very interesting. They looked like real human ears, but had the hearing of some sort of superhuman. It might even be compared to that of a vampire's. She did not understand why many Slytherins thought of them as stupid. They were bloody brilliant.

"Got it," Fred whispered to George, Haley, Hermione, Ron, and Ginny. "Snape is talking about some kind of guard duty."

"That's it?" George asked.

Fred held his finger up. "Hush."

They were silent for a few minutes.

Fred pulled the ear out. "Whatever it is, it is in the Department of Mysteries and the meeting was adjourned."

Without a word, they all rushed up the three flights of stairs to the dim upstairs. They could not be caught spying on a meeting; it would not end well for any of them. They were all breathing hard by the time they reached Hermione's and Ginny's room. None of them said a word as they struggled to catch their breath.

"That was it?" Ron inquired.

Fred smiled. "No, Harry is coming."

They all exchanged looks. It was not that did not want to see Harry; it was more that they did not want to face his temper. They all had been told not to say a word to anyone about what was happening at the Black House, Harry included. Even though he did not say in directly in his letters to Ron and Hermione, it could be safely inferred that he was not happy. He did not understand that the Order was cutting him because they thought he would be safer in the Muggle world. Still, everyone seemed to be happy about seeing him.

At least that was how it looked to Haley.  
>"When?" Hermione asked. Her eyes were bright. She had not asked that question rather away. No one had said anything for five minutes.<p>

"Next week."


	27. Chapter 27:Adrenaline

Chapter Twenty-Seven: Adrenaline

Disclaimer: All characters belong to J.K. Rowling. The underlined portions are taken directly from the novel; I do not own those parts. They belong to J.K. Rowling.

Author's Note: This fanfiction is going to be different from my other stories. This begins during Chamber of Secrets and goes up until three years after the Dark War. So, pay attention the time, so you don't get confused. Some of the chapters are other Marcus Flint/Katie Bell stories, just with more changes and deleted scenes added.

Time: Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

Genre: Romance, Drama, and Friendship

Rating: PG-13

**Just a short chapter that explains what Marcus was doing while the Order went to get Harry. **

Marcus leaned back against the tree. He could feel his heart beating fast and the adrenaline was rushing through him. Beside him, Damon Knightly was doing the same thing. Damon kept peeking around the side of the tree.

"Is she gone?" Marcus asked.

Damon looked once again. "I think so." He crouched back down next to his best friend. "Dude, I never knew that old ladies could be so mean."

"Me neither."

Yesterday, the Order had asked Marcus if he would be willing to keep watch over the group going after Harry. All he had to do was send wand sparks up in the air when no one was looking. He had to wait until the moon was in the right place to hide the brooms. They also had to make sure that Moody sent them a signal from the air. If they did not see that signal, they were to call Brad, who then would go see what was going on. Marcus thought that all of this would be easier if he had someone with him. Katie was busy, but Damon was free. He had left the little bit about Damon coming with him tonight.

Damon pushed his blond bangs out of his eyes. "I think she went back in the house."

Marcus nodded.

The two of them had just been caught cutting through some old woman's garden. She saw them through her living room window and had rushed out with a gun threatening to shot or call the police. She also threw a couple of canned food at them. They did not have time to be killed, injured, or arrested. Maybe some other night, but not tonight.

Marcus and Damon darted up out of the embankment and raced across the field. They destination goal was a wooded hilltop half a mile away. Marcus did not understand why they could not just Apparte to the top, but Moody said they could not. He really did not want to get in trouble with Moody. The ex-Auror somewhat creped him out.

Ten minutes later, they reached the hilltop. The land was so rocky that they had been forced to walk rather than run. The trees were so dense that there was no danger of them being seem from the Muggle homes below, but not dense enough to block the sky. The tops had been cut away from the power lines. It was really a brilliant step up. They were safe from any prying eyes.

Damon's blue eyes kept looking back at the full moon. He knew that this mission was supposed to be a secret. "Question, how are they planning on staying out of the moonlight?"  
>Marcus looked up at the moon. It was going to be very difficult. He looked closer. He had not noticed how cloudy it was before. "The clouds."<p>

"What about them?"

"They are probably going to use the clouds as cover." He winced. "That is going to suck."

Damon smirked. "Somebody is going to get wet."

Marcus looked at them. There were many clouds. "Somebody is going to get very wet." He was glad that it was not going to be him. Since his accident a year and an half ago, he had not been able to keep his body temperature up. He was not sure why, but he was always cold. Whenever he said that he was cold, people would toward his arm and it would be hot. He was not sure why or how. He was starting to think that he was a medical mystery.

"How long do we have?" Damon asked.

"Don't you have a watch or your phone?" Marcus asked.

Damon shook his head. "Phone is at home dead and I never wear a watch."

Marcus pulled up the right sleeve on his hoodie and glanced down at his watch. They still had fifteen minutes until show time. "Fifteen."

Damon nodded.

They passed the fifteen minutes in silence. Both of them stared out of at the wooded area. It was rather boring; there were not even any woodland creatures to keep them occupied. Neither one of them was really in a talking mood. It probably was best that did not talk for the fear of being overheard by a person passing by.

So, they just stood there each leaning against a tree. Both were playing a game of waiting.

The forest was even silent. It was as if it was dead. The only thing they could hear was the beating of their hearts and the sounds of their own breathing. Adrenaline was still racing through their bodies and that let them eager to move.

Marcus glanced down at his watch. "It's time." He pulled his wand out of his pocket.

Damon did the same.

Marcus raised his wand and sent a wave of red sparks into the night. They sailed into the stars and spread like fireworks. "Wait a few minutes."

Three minutes past and Marcus nodded to Damon. Damon shot sparks into the air, only his were green.

Marcus waited and started into the sky. He saw the Order briefly as they passed through the stars. He knew that their job here was done.

He turned to Damon. "Ready to go face the hag again?"

Damon took a deep breath. "I suppose."

They descended the hill to face whatever was waiting.


	28. Chapter 28: I Won't Tell You

Chapter Twenty-Eight: I Won't Tell You

Disclaimer: All characters belong to J.K. Rowling. The underlined portions are taken directly from the novel; I do not own those parts. They belong to J.K. Rowling.

Author's Note: This fanfiction is going to be different from my other stories. This begins during Chamber of Secrets and goes up until three years after the Dark War. So, pay attention the time, so you don't get confused. Some of the chapters are other Marcus Flint/Katie Bell stories, just with more changes and deleted scenes added.

Time: Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

Genre: Romance, Drama, and Friendship

Rating: PG-13

Katie sat down on Marcus's unmade bed and played with a lose string on his pillow. She could hear the water running from the shower. She had woke him up and said that once he was out they would go do something. They really had not had couple time since they got back together.

At least, she assumed that they were back together. Neither one of them had said anything, so she just assumed that they were a couple again. They were acting like they had when they were. She just wanted things to go back to normal. She wanted to be with him.

She heard the door open and Marcus stepped out fully dressed. His dark hair was wet and was curling slightly around the nape of his neck. She wished that he would let his get a little longer so it would get wavy, but, of course, he hated his wavy hair. She thought that it made him look cute; he thought that it made him dorky.

But, whatever.

She was not going to tell him what to do. Yes, she was thinking more deeply than his hair. She was thinking about whatever secrets he was keeping. She looked at him as he slid his feet into a pair of boots. People thought that he was tough, but she knew that he had trouble standing up to his parents and it did not take rocket science to figure out that his parents were involved in his secrets. She wished that he could just get away from the power his family held over him.

He caught her staring at him as his laced up his right boot. "What?" He stopped in mid-tie.

Katie shook her head. "Nothing."

Marcus finished tying his boot. "There is too something."

She smiled at innocent smile at him. "I won't tell you."

"Why not?"

She smiled again and smiled. "I just won't tell you."

He frowned and stood up.

"You are not the only one with secrets." She grabbed his hand. "Come on, let's go have soon fun."

She waited for him to say something. When he did not, she led him out of the room and downstairs. "Are we driving?"

Marcus nodded as he picked his keys off the coffee table. "We need to take the truck. I need to put gas into." He also picked his wallet and wand off the coffee table and shoved both into his back pocket.

"Ready now?"

"Yep."

Katie led the way out to the garage. She climbed into the passenger side of the truck as Marcus slid into the driver's side. She studied him as he started the truck and backed it out. Now, that she was close to him, she could actually see how he was falling apart. There were dark circles under his eyes that had not been there a few weeks ago and it looked as if he had lost weight. His face was pale. He just looked miserable to her. She wanted to tell him this, but she would not. Marcus was watching her as she studied him, but did not say a word about it.

They drove in forty-five minute drive to Falmouth in silence. He pulled into a gas station and got out. She watched him as he pumped gas. He looked as if he had been burned, but was still going to play with fire. That was the Marcus Flint she knew and loved.

Five minutes later, he got back into the truck. "So, now what?"

Katie shrugged.

He smiled and tickled her side. "Come on, there must be something."

"Food, maybe," she said laughing. She playfully smacked his arm. "Stop it!"

He tickled her even more. "Marcus Nathaniel Flint, stop it!" She had to pull the middle name out. She knew that he hated his middle name and calling him by it was low.

But it did get him to stop.

He pulled out of the gas station and into the rush hour of southern Falmouth. Katie watched as cars weaved in and out of lanes. One of the lanes was a standstill and another was creeping. Traffic was bumper to bumper. It was just insane.

Marcus swore loudly in Italian as a sport car cut him off. Even though she could not understand for sure what he had just said, she had a pretty good idea. Plus, she knew what curse words he liked to use on a regular basis.

"Um, do you have any objections with eating out of the city?" he asked. He kept looking to see if he could exit the motorway or change lanes. Neither one of those was an option at this point in time.

"No," Katie said.

"Good, because it is the only choice we have." An angry horn honked at him as he swerved in front of a van.

Katie did not say anything. She was no longer thinking about the traffic. She was thinking about the return of You-Know-Who. The only choice they had was to stand up and fight. She knew that Marcus knew something about what was going on. He just would not tell or admit that he knew what was going on.

Marcus drove ten miles out of the city and into a local buffet. The buffet was not a tourist attraction, but a local secret. Katie loved to eat here and Marcus knew it. He was probably bringing her here so she would forgive him for keeping secrets. That was not going to happen; she was not going to tell that until he had paid for her meal.

They got out and enjoyed the meal.

Later that night, back at Marcus's, Katie sat down next to him on his large couch. She took the remote from his hand and turned the television off. She turned his face so he was looking straight at her.

"What?" he asked.

"I need you to admit what you know." She stroked his cheek. There was slight stubble on it. She had not noticed it earlier.

Marcus bit his lip. It was a habit of his that he did when he was thinking. "I can't tell you."

"Can't or won't?"

"I can't."

"Why not?"

"It's too dangerous for you to know." He looked away. "I can tell that I don't want to be involved."

"Why not?"

"I don't want to get in so deep and find that I can't get out." He buried his hands in his face and after a few moments looked back up at her. "I've opened my eyes to what is going on, because if we want to survive this thing we have too."

Katie nodded and leaned into him. "I understand."

**I'm sorry for any mistakes in this chapter. I wrote it late at night, because I needed to get an update. So, sorry a million times. **


	29. Chapter 29: Serendipity

Chapter Twenty-Nine: Serendipity

Disclaimer: All characters belong to J.K. Rowling. The underlined portions are taken directly from the novel; I do not own those parts. They belong to J.K. Rowling.

Author's Note: This fanfiction is going to be different from my other stories. This begins during Chamber of Secrets and goes up until three years after the Dark War. So, pay attention the time, so you don't get confused. Some of the chapters are other Marcus Flint/Katie Bell stories, just with more changes and deleted scenes added.

Time: Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

Genre: Romance, Drama, and Friendship

Rating: PG-13

Marcus looked at Katie. "Does that satisfy you?"

Katie thought about his answer. "In a way, it does." She paused. "I just want you to do something that you want to do. I don't want to see you do something just because your parents want you to."

Marcus sat back against the couch. He was always trying to stay close to his parents. They had not been around much during his child and teenage years. He had been raised pretty much by house elves and the hired help. His older stepbrothers had moved out after graduating from Hogwarts and his father's daughter rarely came around. He had only met her a couple of times. His mum's parents just gave him a lot of money and his dad's were not really in the picture.

Since the Dark Lord had returned, they had wanted more to do with. Joining the Order was a risk he was willing to take. It was not only for his family, but he felt that it was the right thing to do. It felt like it was one of those things that he had to do.

"Marcus?" Katie waved her hand in front of his face. "Hello, earth to Marcus."

Marcus grabbed her hand and put it in his lap. "Maybe I'm doing it to prove a point."

Katie looked at him. She had no idea that a group such as the Order existed. "What's that?" She was confused. "I thought you just said that you did not want to get involved."

Marcus looked up at her. "I don't."

"Then, what is the point to whatever it is that you are doing?"

"That I do not fit the Slytherin stereotype."

"I never thought you did."

Marcus did not respond. It was common knowledge that the Slytherin House turned out the most Dark wizards, but that did not mean that all Slytherins took that route. In fact, most did not. Most just chose not to stand up against darkness. However, most had the gift of serendipity. They often discovered darkness, but only found things that were valuable and useful. Most of that was thought to be from a Ravenclaw, but that was far from the truth.

Katie kissed his soft lips. He was still bound by chains, but was breaking those chains. It was just a matter of time before he broke those changes and let his wings free. Only then, would he be completely free.

Marcus returned the kiss. "It could kill me."

Katie broke away. "That is not good make out words."

Marcus grinned. "Sorry."

She sat far away from him. "Now, I am not in the mood to make out."

Marcus looked at her sheepishly. "Well, it's the truth."

She moved back to him. "Well, I guess we will just have to bring you back to life."

Marcus looked at her. "I think you've watched way too many movies."

Katie got a thoughtful look on her face. She was silent for several minutes. "That might be part of it."

"What's the other part?"

"That I have been around you for too long and am starting to think like you."

Marcus just glared and said not a word.

Katie smirked. "Well, it is the truth."

Marcus shrugged and went back into deep thought. The Order could not change him. That just could not happen, but he had something that the members of the Order did not. In addition, every member of the Order was well known and he was too. However, he was after all, barely nineteen years old. He could blend in with the masses. He could channel two sides of himself. He could be both flexible and show apathy at the same time. Many people did not have those gifts.

He could also cross the line without a second thought. He could do that, wake up the next morning, and feel fine. He could still do that even if things did not go his way. It was a fallacy and a curse to most people, but not him.

He was not stillborn. The Order had a purpose and a duty, just as he did. From the start, neither of them was useless and ineffectual; everything had a purpose and a place. It was as if the pieces of a giant puzzle had come together and made a brilliant masterpiece. It was that simple and he did not know why it had taken him that long to discover it.

All of this was a gift of serendipity. It was a gift and a discovery that he could be valuable to the Order. He was not a puppet. The Order was his puppet.

Out of the corner of his eye, Marcus saw that Katie was staring at him. "What?"

"Are you okay?" she asked in a concerned tone. Normally, Marcus was not this quite.

"Um, yeah. I was just thinking."

Katie leaned into his shoulder. "About what?"

Marcus stared straight ahead. "It just became clear to me."

"What?" Her blue eyes stared into his chocolate ones.

Marcus's eyes had opened up. He could see the past, the present, and the future. He could see what could happen someday. All of these things were important, but not the most important. The most important that was that he could see things for what they were at the current time. He could see for today.

"That I have the upper hand," Marcus finally said.


	30. Chapter 30: Breath

Chapter Thirty: Breath

Disclaimer: All characters belong to J.K. Rowling. The underlined portions are taken directly from the novel; I do not own those parts. They belong to J.K. Rowling.

Author's Note: This fanfiction is going to be different from my other stories. This begins during Chamber of Secrets and goes up until three years after the Dark War. So, pay attention the time, so you don't get confused. Some of the chapters are other Marcus Flint/Katie Bell stories, just with more changes and deleted scenes added.

Time: Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

Genre: Romance, Drama, and Friendship

Rating: PG-13

Marcus rolled over in his sleep. His right wrist flung out and hit is nightstand. He woke with a jerk and swore loudly. He sat up still rubbing his wrist. Of his two wrists he had to hit off of something, he had to pick the one that he had badly injured during the accident. Tonight was a restless night for some reason. Nothing was out of the ordinary. He got up this morning, went to practice, went to a boring Order meeting, and came home. That was the extent of his day. So, why could he not sleep?

He glanced at digital alarm clock on the nightstand in question. It was only two o'clock. There was still more than a few hours before he could even consider getting up and doing something. He fell back against his pillows and laid there for several minutes attempting to go back to sleep.

No matter how hard he tried, he could not fall back to sleep. It just was not going to happen and there was no point in trying.

He got up and padded in his sock feet over the door that led out to the balcony. He parted the long curtains that blocked the sunlight during the day and stepped onto the damp wood. The southern England night air was cold with a little hint of rain. The night was a clear, starless night. Without the stars, the night was darker than it appeared and the shadows were coming out to play.

The shadows were not friendly creatures. They were not the shadows of angels, but the shadows of demons. They were the evil in the good world. They were not the sole evil; they were more of the pre-game show. The real show was going to follow. The real show was going to be killer and everyone would not make it the final level.

Some would not make if off the first level. Some would also complete the final level, then the world would come crashing down on them.

He took a deep breath and choked. The night took the breath right out of him. Was this a sign of what was yet to come? He stepped backwards toward the door. Rain was beginning to gently fall. In the distance, there was a roll of thunder. The storm was coming and it was coming faster than any of them could have predicted.

**Morning**  
>In a small shop in Knockturn Alley, two people in dark robes stood in front of the counter. They were waiting for the young shop owner to return with their items. Knockturn Alley was a place where they could talk freely. After all, they were among their own kind. They could not lose here.<p>

"Have you heard what I heard?" one asked his partner.

"You tell me," the other said.

"The weapon had been retrieved."

The second nodded. "So, what's the next step?"

"The Boy Who Lived."

"When?"

"That is yet to be determined," the first said as the young, shop owner came back in.

She handed them two wrapped packages that contained potion ingredients that could not be found in other places. They were only found on the black market. Even shops in Knockturn Alley did not keep them out in the open. The use of them was the same as using an Unforgiveable Curse. Like an Unforgiveable Curse, they were necessary at certain times.

The time to use the ingredients was not now, but in the near future. They would take the breath out of someone and leave a hole where their heart should be. No matter who hard that person fought, they would not make it through.

"Thank you, Natalia," the first replied.

Natalia nodded. She had waist length black hair with red highlights. She had beautiful hazel eyes and a spotless complexion. She looked as if she was of Asian descent, but one could not tell for sure. The only thing that one could tell was that she was beautiful. "That will be twenty Galleons," she said.

The second batted his eyes at her. "Can't you give us a discount?"

Natalia glared coldly at him. "No."

"Please?"

"This stuff is hard to come by." She pauses. "I can raise the price if you would like that."

The first gave her the money. "No, that is quite alright."

Natalia took the money. "Come on, can't you give me a little tip?"

"Only if you give us a price break," the second said.

Natalia got a thoughtful look on her face. "Um, no."

"Then, you are not getting a tip," the first said in a flirty voice.

She shrugged.

The first tucked the ingredients into his robes. "If things plan out correctly, the need for this secret business will end. You could, then, sell this stuff in plain sight."

Natalia smiled, showing off her white teeth. "I cannot wait." She looked around her empty shop. It would help her business. "That would help me so much."

The first nodded. "As would it greatly help us." He pulled a watch out of his robes and looked at it. "Well, my dear, we must be on our way."

The two left the shop. Natalia went over the window and pulled back the dark curtain. Outside the men had meant with a couple of other people. They were standing in the circle talking amongst themselves. After several minutes, the group parted.

She let the curtain drop. They could take freely amongst themselves in Knockturn Alley, but they were not the only ones who could talk.

Katie studied her book list with a frown on her face. Since she was entering her first year of N.E.W.T.s, she had to get all new books. This was not going to be cheap. Her family did not have much money. She sighed. She could ask Marcus for money, but she could not bring herself to.

Angelina and Alicia came up next to her.

"Got everything?" Alicia inquired.

Katie looked at her two old friends. "No."

Angelina took the list from Katie. "You could just use your boyfriend's books. I would offer mine, but I need them again this year."

Katie never thought of using Marcus's old books, that was if he still had them. She would bet that most of them were in pretty good condition. Some of them she was willing to bet had not been opened. "I could." She thought. His trunk was in one of the spare bedrooms at his house. He probably had not taken the books out.

Angelina smiled. "There, the troll finally has some use."

Katie texted Marcus and asked if she could use them. "He is not a troll."

Angelina shrugged. "He acts like one most of the time."

"He does not."

Angelina feel silent.  
>Katie felt her mobile vibrate. She opened the message. "He said he still has them and I can use them." She texted him a word of thanks and snapped her mobile shut. "Okay, we can leave."<p>

Alicia smiled. "Good. Now, let's go do some real shopping." She lead the way out of the bookshop. "I need a new pair of Chaser gloves."

Katie followed her two friends in silence. Even though she did not have to buy the books, she still had a problem. Marcus had left Hogwarts last year and probably had not opened the trunk up since them. It was bound to be a frightening experience.

The three Gryffindor Chasers entered the Quidditch shop. It was the girls' favourite shop and they always left it with their money bags a lot lighter than what they entered with. This even occurred when none of them needed anything. They always found something that could be turned from a want to a need.

Katie never spent much money here. Marcus had a monthly allowance for Quidditch supplies. The Falcons paid for whatever he or someone using his account bought. She was pretty sure that his allowance was unlimited.

He seemed to get a lot of things unlimited from the Falcons; his tuition and health insurance were all being paid. He also got a fat pay check every other week. On top of that, he also had a rather large inherence. He was probably one of the wealthiest people she knew. She sighed. He had just gotten lucky and been born into a blue-blooded family and had talent.

She went over to the pads and grabbed a set. Hers were getting pretty worn down. She also grabbed a pair of gloves; a girl could never have too many. She also grabbed medical supplies, another item you could never had too much of. She grabbed some more. Marcus would need them too and she knew that he probably had not even thought about getting some.

Angelina and Alicia approached Katie with full arms.

"Are you ready?" Angelina asked.

"I am ready if you are," Katie said.

Alicia looked at the medical supplies. She was probably wondering why Katie had so many and was getting ready to ask.

Angelina beat her. "Do you plan on having an accident?"

"No, I got some for Marcus," Katie explained.

"Yeah, he needs those. I bet he trips over his own two feet."

"Be nice," Alicia muttered.

"It's not like he's here," Angelina said as she marched up to the counter. "I warm up here, then go higher."

"Why don't you admit that you like him?" Alicia said as she paid for her items.

Angelina crossed her arms. "I don't like him. There is nothing good about him. He is evil."

"Uh-huh," Alicia said sarcastically. She was smirking.

"Then, why do you make fun of him?" Katie inquired as she charged her supplies to Marcus's account.

"Okay, I can't believe he dumped you, got drunk, and you took him back!" Angelina cried.

"Um, actually, I dumped him," Katie said quietly.

Angelina walked out onto the street. The other two followed. "I knew that and you ruined my story." She sighed. "I will just have to come up with something else." She wanted to add that the more she saw of him that more she liked, but she did not want to be even more obvious about it than she already was.

Angelina looked at her friends. "When I do, it will be a good one."

Katie glared at her friend. "I can hardly wait." Why didn't Angelina understand that Marcus took Katie's breath away? She sighed. Hogwarts started in two weeks and she could not stand anyone of this.

~***~  
>Marcus walked out of the bookshop. He was bored and decided to wonder around London for awhile. He had bought two books on endangered magical creatures and casually flipping through one of them as he walked. He was not paying attention to where he was going and walked into someone.<p>

"Hey!" a girl said.

Marcus shut his book. "Sorry." He looked at the girl. It was the same girl who had attempted to hit on him at the club. He tried to remember her name. Natalia seemed to sound right.

She grabbed him and led him into the entryway of Knockturn Alley. She pinned him against the brick wall.

All of this because he accidently ran into her?

"Look, you need me," Natalia said.

Marcus was confused. "Huh?"

"You need me," she leaned in closer as a group of people pasted them. She kissed him. "Lean into it," she hissed. "You will thank me in a minute."

Marcus looked over her shoulder. The group was known Death Eaters. He did not question it and did as he was told. He kissed her. It was not kissing Katie. She took his breath away and with Natalia there was nothing.

The group disappeared.

Natalia broke the kiss. "Do not expect to do to that again."

"Like wise," Marcus said. He paused. "Why do I need you?"

Natalia stepped back and looked. No one else was coming. "I have a shop in Knockturn Alley."

"And?" Marcus asked. He really was not following this.

"People talk in Knockturn Alley," she said.

"Freely?"

Natalia nodded.

"Are you willing to share information?"

She smiled.

"How do you know about me?"

"I wasn't sure about you, but I knew about you parents," Natalia replied.

"When was you sure?" Marcus inquired.

"Just now."

Marcus nodded. "Why are you asking me?"

Natalia stared him in the eye. "I am sick of them acting like they own the world."

Marcus nodded again.

"Do want my help or not?" Natalia asked.

Marcus took a deep breath. This was big risk. He did not really know Natalia, but she sounded like she wanted to help. Was he willing to sacrifice the Order? It could be the death of them all. The odds were, however, in their favour with her. The Order needed all the help it could get or the fight would had ended before even started. The wound had been opened and he did not want to be the one to pour the salt.

But, they needed help.

"Can it just be between the two of us?" Marcus asked.

"That would probably be the best," Natalia said. "I will see you around."

Marcus watched as she disappeared into Knockturn Alley.

**So, I do not know when the next chapter will be up. There is a good chance that it will not be in the near future. My college workload is picking up. I also have a couple of short stories I want to write. **


	31. Chapter 31: What You Want

Chapter Thirty-One: What You Want

Disclaimer: All characters belong to J.K. Rowling. The underlined portions are taken directly from the novel; I do not own those parts. They belong to J.K. Rowling.

Author's Note: This fanfiction is going to be different from my other stories. This begins during Chamber of Secrets and goes up until three years after the Dark War. So, pay attention the time, so you don't get confused. Some of the chapters are other Marcus Flint/Katie Bell stories, just with more changes and deleted scenes added.

Time: Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

Genre: Romance, Drama, and Friendship

Rating: PG-13

**Bold: Flashback **

_So, this chapter sets up for what is to come in the next part of this story. It is longer(not as long as Carol of the Bells though) because most of the characters in the previous chapters make an appearance (mostly the point of view characters will). I also realized that Harry has not been in this story, so I will attempt to get him here soon. _

**Two Months Later**

Marcus Flint ran his hand through his short dark hair. It was another long of Quidditch practice. He had been with the Falcons since he left Hogwarts, but, yet, he still found some of the training seasons stupid. He really did not see the reason behind nine hour practices, five days a week. Yes, they did have games every weekend from November to August, but still. He had a life.

Okay, not really.

He did have a long time girlfriend, Katie Bell. He did like going out with friends. Okay, he did like being nineteen.

He was not like most people his age. Unlike, a lot of people he did not deny that the Dark Lord was back. Like the rest of his family, he had decided to join the fight against the Dark Arts.

He still was not one hundred percent sure, what he was doing in this fight, but the world was closing in on him. He knew that he was not over, but it felt like it was. He knew that he had to stand up and face the unknown. It was not over.

No. In fact, it was just getting started.

He sighed. There was still Natalia. He had not told Katie about her. It was one of those talks that he was willing to put off for as long as possible. There was nothing going on between them, but still he did not want Katie to find out from someone on the street. He needed to tell Katie about everything before she got hurt. He did not want to have a repeat of the past summer.

He walked into the locker room behind his fellow Chaser, Jamie. Jamie threw his broom down on the bench and faced Marcus. He looked just as tired as the other boy did. "This is stupid," Jamie muttered. "We don't even play a bloody game until the first of November."

Marcus pulled his muddy robes off. "And it's only September." He threw is robes on the bench. "What's Hastings going to be like closer to the game?"

Jamie shrugged. "I don't want to even think about it." He pulled his sweater and T-shirt over his head. "Stupid, bloody stupid."

Marcus took his own sweater and T-shirt. "You said bloody. I thought you said that you weren't going to become British."

Jamie threw his boot at Marcus, who ducked and let it sail over his head. "Shut up!"

Marcus listened as the boot hit the floor with a loud bang. "Just saying."

Jamie gathered his towel and soap. "Whatever, I am going to take a shower. Coming?" He paused. "That just came out wrong."

"Um, yeah and yes it did." Marcus gathered his things.

Jamie shook his head. "Man..." He walked toward the showers.

Marcus rolled his eyes and followed his friend.

In his bag, he could hear his mobile ringing. He thought about turning back and answering it, but decided not to. Whoever it was could wait until after he had taken a shower.

**Knockturn Alley **

Natalia Woods leaned over her counter staring out into the crowd. She had texted Marcus close to an hour ago and the boy still had not showed up. He also had not answered his mobile. She knew that he had practice today, but she had expected him to get back to her quicker.

She had information for him and he needed to know what she had to say. She did not know why she was doing this for the Order. Marcus may had something to do with it. She touched her lips. She did have to admit that he was a pretty good kisser.

That may have been part of it.

"Come on, Marcus," she muttered. She pulled her mobile out of her pocket for the hundredth time. "Come on, boy." She tapped her fingers on the counter.

The bell to the shop dinged signalling the entrance of a person. She listened hopping that it was Marcus. The person did not walk like Marcus did. She looked up and saw a man dressed in rags. He was short and smelled of smoke. He threw a bag of items on the counter. "I wish to sell these," he said. He turned to bag upside down and dumped its' contents on the counter.

Natalia looked at them. It was just a bunch of old cups and dishes She picked up one of the cups. It had an emblem that read "The Most Noble House of Black." "There's stuff written on it."

The man looked at her. "But, my lady, they are worth more than you can imagine."

She stared at the items. "I see." She looked through them all. "I can offer twenty Galloons for the lot."

The man looked at the stuff and appeared to be deep in thought. "Is that the best you can do?"

"Yes."

The man sighed. "I see."

Natalia stared him down. "Do you need to get rid of these items quickly?"

The man did not respond.

Natalia smiled.

"Twenty Galloons it is," the man replied slowly.

Natalia wrote it up, paid him, and watched as he tugged out of her shop into the busy street. She watched him go. Not only did people talk in Knockturn Alley, they also sold interesting items. Even if the people did not talk, the items they brought in told the story. She had a pretty good idea as to what the story for these items was. She also had a feeling that Marcus would be very interested in them as well.

**Southern England **

Damon Knightly rand his hand through his short blond hair. He stared down at the letter from his stepfather. He and his stepfather never did see eye to eye. That was the main reason Damon had moved out right after leaving Hogwarts. His stepfather was always telling him how to live his live and what he should do with it.

Damon picked up the letter and threw it into the fireplace. He watched as the flames licked up the ink.

Things had not been the same in Damon's family since his father had been killed ten years ago. No one knew for sure what had happened. He just remembered an Auror coming to their mansion in Ireland and telling his mother, him, and his twin sister, Ever, the awful news. Investigations had been conducted, but no answers could be given.

They never would be.

All Damon knew about his father was that he was involved in some secret Anti-Dark Magic group. He was not even sure of the name. His mum could not answer these questions either. Really, pretty much all he knew was that Marcus's parents had been involved somehow.

In fact, that was how he meant Marcus. Both boys had been three or four and forced to play together while Marcus's parents and Damon's dad whispered in the study. The boys had become close and still reminded friends. The one of the few times that Damon ever cried was when he was six when the Flints got transferred to Italy. He remembered fearing that he would never see his friend again. They kept in touch, but it was never the same. Perhaps one of the happiest days of his life was whenever he received word that the family was moving back to Great Britain.

Now, the only thing that separated them was a few trees. Damon looked out the window. Marcus's property was still dark. It was after midnight. Marcus rolling in late was starting to become the norm. He found himself wanting to know where his friend was, but after some thought, believed that it would probably be best not to ask.

**After the champions came in and lead the first dance, Katie turned to Marcus. "Would you like to dance?"**

** Marcus looked at her. "I thought I was supposed to ask you." **

** Katie pulled him out onto the dance floor. "I'm not one for traditions." She put her arms around his waist. "Besides, if I waited on you, the dance would be over." Her blue eyes were shining. **

** They danced in and out of the other couples. Everyone and everything shone in the candlelight. The snow falling from the season was the perfect Christmas snow. Katie found herself looking up at it every few minutes. As a result, she stepped on Marcus's feet many times. Each time she did so, Marcus winced, but did not say a word. **

** Katie buried her face into his shoulder. **

** "Yes?" Marcus inquired.**

** Katie removed her face. "Can we go outside?"**

** Marcus led her off the dance floor. "I'd thought you'd never ask."**

** "Why don't you like dancing?"**

** "It's almost as a fun as having to drink that stupid healing Potion."**

** Katie laughed. **

** Marcus shrugged. "It's the truth." **

** They walked outside through the rose garden that was not there yesterday. At least, Katie thought that it was not there yesterday. She breathed in the deep scent of the roses. After about five minutes of walking, Katie stopped next to a bench and sat down. She patted the seat next to her and Marcus sat down. **

** She stared up at the night sky. "Everything's getting bad, isn't it?"**

** Marcus looked at her. "What are you talking about?"**

** "There's a storm coming."  
>Marcus looked down at the ground. <strong>

** Katie sighed. "I know you know Marcus."**

** Marcus looked up at her. "Do we have to discuss this on Christmas?"  
>"I guess not," Katie mumbled. <strong>

** Marcus kissed the top of her head. "Good."**

** Katie turned her head up at meet his lips and gently kissed him. "Merry Christmas," Katie said.**

** "Merry Christmas," Marcus whispered.**

** Behind them, the bell tower chimed in a wonderful carol of the bells. **

**Hogwarts **

Katie slammed her books down on a Gryffindor common room table. "What is she playing at?" she asked Leanne.

Leanne looked up at her friend. "I assume you mean our lovely new teacher."

Katie nodded. She hated Umbridge. The woman was not teaching them anything. All they did was read from the stupid textbook. She felt sorry for those who had her for O.W.L and N.E.W.T. exams. She sat exams next year and did not know what she was going to do if Umbridge was still around. She hated to think about that.

Leanne sighed. "I have heard multiple complainants about that woman." She paused and let her voice drop. "I heard that Harry Potter got into trouble with her today."

Katie raised an eyebrow. "Over what?"

"He told her that You-Know-Who was back and that we should be learning to defend ourselves."

Katie leaned in closer to her friend. "Shouldn't we? I mean, if there is a threat shouldn't we learn to defend ourselves?"

"I think so."

"Then, why did Harry get into trouble?"

"Because he would do back down."

Katie bit her lip. She believed that someone needed to stand up against Umbridge. She knew that Harry's temper had gotten him into trouble before; that made him a lot like Marcus. Still, she believed that someone needed to stand up and fight her. She normally was not for rule breaking, but this was something that had to be down. The old frog simply could not do this to them for the rest of the year. People would not stand for it.

"And what happened?" Katie inquired.

"I think he has detention for a week," Leanne replied.

Katie winced.

"What's wrong?"

"Angelina is going to kill him."

"Why?"

"Quidditch tryouts are this week."

Leanne winced. "The boy is dead."

Katie thought that Harry may wish he was dead once Angelina got word of his detention. She was like Oliver when it came to practice: be there or else. She did not want to be Harry once Angelina found out nor did she want to be in her war path. Tonight's practice was going to be interesting and intense. When Angelina was ticked off, everyone knew and everyone suffered.

"And the team is going to pay for it tonight," Katie said.

"Oh, way is that?" Leanne asked as she flipped through her book.

"Have you ever been around Angelina when she is ticked off?"

Leanne looked over the tip of her book. "No, why?"

"Let's just say the Atomic Bomb looks mild next to her."

Leanne made a face. "Oh, I see." She got a thoughtful look on her face. "Well, good luck with that."

**Slytherin Common Room**

Haley bit her lip and stared at her hand. She was supposed to be writing an essay for Potions, but was not really feeling it. In fact, she was not feeling anything at all right now.

Blaise, who was sitting across from her, looked up at her. "What's wrong?"

Haley sighed. "I am not feeling like homework right now."

"Oh."

"Yeah, I want to do something."

Blaise's eyes light up. "Like what?"

Haley sighed. "That's the thing. I don't know."

Blaise leaned in and kissed her cheek. He nuzzled her neck. "We could go someplace a little more private."

She looked at him with a fitly look. "How about no?"

He smiled at her. "Just thought I would try."

"It was a nice try and a fail." She slammed her Potions book shut. "Let's go for a walk." She stood up and offered Blaise her hand. "What you do say?"

He stood up. "I supposed we are going to do what you want anyway."

She smiled. "You have that right."

She lead the way out of the Slytherin common room. The hallway outside was dimly light allowing for the shadows to creep onto the walls. It was as if the hall was alive with hundreds of people when the reality of it was that Haley and Blaise were the only ones present. She had always liked the Gothic design of the castle. It made it feel more homely to her.

Blaise held her hand as they walked up the steps to the Entrance Hall. Only a few students lingered in the wide hall. They were leaning against the stone structures of it. Haley thought that they were probably friends talking to each other from different houses.

Blaise led the way over to the side door that led to the courtyard. They stepped out. The courtyard was light up by moonlight and as far as Haley could tell it was empty. She followed him over to a marble bench in the centre of it.

Blaise cleared his throat. "Potter told Umbridge off yesterday," he said.

Haley stared out into the courtyard. "So, I heard." She paused. "He called her a liar, didn't he?"

Blaise nodded. "Something along that line." He paused. "I think Potter had better watch it."

"I thought you didn't believe what the Daily Prophet wrote?" Haley interrupted. She thought he was going to start in on all of the slander Harry was receiving.

"No, I don't. I just think that he had better be careful. You can't fight fire with fire. That sort of thing."

Haley looked at Blaise and started to speak slowly. "He needs to be cunning like the snake."

He nodded. "He needs to think like a Slytherin."

Haley smiled and shook her head.

Blaise looked at her confused. "What?"

"Only a Slytherin can think like a Slytherin."

"Yeah, he just needs to tap into his inter Slytherin."

**Library**

Hermione tapped her quill against the thick book that was laid out in front of her. She had not opened it in the hour that she had been here. She could not bring herself too. Harry's outburst had struck a nerve with her and she did not know why. It was not Harry's reaction, but Umbridge's. That woman was going to bring them all down. For once, she did not care about the rules.

She stared at the row of books in front of her. They had to stand up for themselves. What she was doing to them was not right. They deserved to have a teacher and that hag certainly was not one. They needed someone to show them what to do.

She took a deep breath. Normally, she would be offering to do it, but she knew that there was someone better to do it. There was someone who was better than them all. She stared out the window. The moon was bright and it caused a brilliant light to reach across the grounds. Hagrid's house was dark. Even though the rest of campus was light up, the darkness of the hut fight the mood. Instead of it being a light in the dark, it was dark in the light. It made sense now.  
>They needed someone to teach them. No teacher could do it. No, they needed Harry. They needed him to do what they wanted. No, it was not a want, it was a need.<p> 


	32. Chapter 32: Stand My Ground

Chapter Thirty-Two: Stand My Ground

Disclaimer: All characters belong to J.K. Rowling. The underlined portions are taken directly from the novel; I do not own those parts. They belong to J.K. Rowling.

Author's Note: This fanfiction is going to be different from my other stories. This begins during Chamber of Secrets and goes up until three years after the Dark War. So, pay attention the time, so you don't get confused. Some of the chapters are other Marcus Flint/Katie Bell stories, just with more changes and deleted scenes added.

Time: Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

Genre: Romance, Drama, and Friendship

Rating: PG-13

Marcus pulled his mobile out. His hair was still dripping slightly from his shower. He was dressed in jeans and a blue, graphic T-shirt. On his feet, he wore dragon hide boots. He flipped through his messages and missed calls. By the look of it, Natalia had been trying to get a hold of him all day. He sighed. He really did not want to deal with her today, but he felt that he had no choice. He had questions and she had answers.

At least he hoped she did.

Jamie come in and found Marcus staring at his mobile. "So, I guess you aren't coming tonight?"

Marcus looked up from his mobile. "No, I need to take of this."

Jamie nodded as he got dressed. "Clear whatever problems you have up before this weekend. Hastings will kill you if you miss another team social." He pulled his shirt over his head. "Why do we even have those things? Don't say team bonding. We see each other every day."

Marcus shrugged. "It gives an excuse to behave stupidly."

Jamie threw his robes into his bag. "That is very true."

Marcus put his mobile into his back pocket next to his wand. "I will try to have it straightened out before the weekend." He needed to go to the team social this weekend. He had missed a lot of them since joining the Order. He needed to go before people started asking any more questions than they already were. He was only nineteen and people questioned him if he did not act like normal people his age did. He slammed his locker shut and turned back to his friend. "If it is not straightened out by the weekend, then it will just have to wait."

Jamie smiled. "That is more like it." He got a thoughtful look on his face. "Or we can always just kidnap you."

"I will be there."

"Come on, now, I want to participate a kidnapping." Jamie stared at Marcus. "We may have to gag and bind you."

Marcus threw his bag over his shoulder. "I will be there." He started to walk out of the locker room.

"Just remember, I have a plan!" Jamie shouted behind him.

Marcus shook his head. He could not tell if Jamie was joking or not. He had a feeling that the threat of kidnapping him was not a joke.

**Knockturn Alley **

Marcus Apparted outside of Natalia's shop. He looked up at the gray, old buildings. Knockturn Alley was a grim place; so, grim that he stayed away as much as possible. But, for some reason he kept coming back.

Natalia must have been looking out the window, because she burst out of the shop with her cloak and long hair flying out behind her. She threw her arms around his neck and kissed his lips. After a few minutes she broke away and grabbed his hand. "I've got something to show you," she said as she lead him to the fire escape.

Natalia help open a window. She motioned for him to crawl through. When he did, he found himself in her small bedroom. The poorly lightened room only contained a dresser, a trunk, a twin size bed, and several books stacked in a corner. It reminded him of the university's dorms. (He was in his second year of university.)

She sat down on the bed; he sat down next to her. Natalia pulled several pieces on parchment out of her cloak and tossed them to Marcus. He looked down at it. It wasn't in English; it was in Ancient Runes.

"Do you think you could translate it?" Natalia asked.

Marcus studied the papers. Sure, he could translate them, but he wanted to be difficult. "Can't you? I thought you took Ancient Runes too." He remembered her leaving the classroom at Hogwarts. She had been two years ahead of him and her year always had the subject before his.

She smiled sweetly at him. "I did, but I forget. Besides you're better at it than me," she purred in his ear.

He moved away from her and glared. He was not in the mood for this. He did not like girls who threw themselves at him. He also wondered how she believed he was good at translating them. He held her gaze. "What's in it for me?"

"You can tell your little Order friends whatever it says," she whispered.

Marcus stared back down at them. "What's in it for you?"

Natalia twirled a lock of hair around a finger. "Money and knowledge."

He looked at her. "And me?"

She smiled. "The satisfaction of having something over them." She paused. "Something to stand your ground with."

"What if I don't want to stand my ground?" he inquired.

Natalia laughed. "Yeah right."

Marcus sighed and placed the papers inside his cloak. He stood up. "Is that it?"

Natalia reached under the bed and threw a cup at him. "I believe that belongs to your little friends."

Marcus looked at the cup. It had the Black family seal on it. He looked back up at her with questions forming on his tongue.

She made a go away motion with her hand. "Leave now. I have nothing else for you."

He knew that there was no chance of getting any answers. He huffed out of the flat.


	33. Chapter 33: Equilibruim

Chapter Thirty-Three: Equilibrium

Disclaimer: All characters belong to J.K. Rowling. The underlined portions are taken directly from the novel; I do not own those parts. They belong to J.K. Rowling.

Author's Note: This fanfiction is going to be different from my other stories. This begins during Chamber of Secrets and goes up until three years after the Dark War. So, pay attention the time, so you don't get confused. Some of the chapters are other Marcus Flint/Katie Bell stories, just with more changes and deleted scenes added.

Time: Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

Genre: Romance, Drama, and Friendship

Rating: PG-13

Katie pulled on her scarlet robes. Today was tryouts and Angelina was flipping out. Harry could not be there because of detention, there was people out there watching the tryouts, and flipping out seemed to had become a norm for Angelina. Katie thought that it had something to do with the fact that she was trying to do what Oliver had done. She thought that Angelina and the rest of the team would be better off if Angelina did what she thought was best.

It was the pressure that was going to kill them this year. They did not have to worry about the other teams, they just had to worry about any internal problems that may come about. She had heard and knew about winning teams that feel apart because team members could not get along. Sometimes the old members would new get along with the new members and each party would try to make the other one as miserable as possible. In order to win and have a fun season, there had to be equilibrium in the team.

Katie pulled her gloves on. She hoped that the Gryffindor team could find that equilibrium and use it to their advantage. Without it, the team would be giving the Quidditch Cup to some other house. Even though they had won it from Marcus's team, she enjoyed having something over the Slytherins heads.

She walked out over to where Angelina was.

"Today's it," Angelina said in a solemn voice.

"Huh?"

Angelina picked up her broom. "Today decides if Gryffindor will get to keep the Cup." She paused. "I don't want to give it up. We just got it back and we deserve to keep it."

Katie nodded. "I know."

Angelina sighed. "Does your boyfriend know who the current Slytherin line-up is?"

Marcus did not talk about anything Slytherin related to her. He did not talk about it even though he was out of school. Katie did not understand why people thought she and Marcus exchanged Quidditch plans. It just did not happen. She was not even sure where he kept his old playbooks or if he even still had them. "No, he didn't." She paused. "The only Quidditch topic he mentions is the Falcons."

Angelina rubbed her jaw. "I was just hoping that he may had said something."

"Sorry, Angie." She bit her lip. "I will tell you if he does. He may not even know."

"That's true, but I have a strong hunch that he knows."

Now that Katie thought about it, she believed that Marcus knew exactly who was on the team and who was not. He was just keeping his mouth shut. If he was the one still playing Hogwarts Quidditch and she knew her old team's line-up, she would not tell him. "He probably does. He seems to have a lot of secrets lately."

"That's the male gender for you."

Katie snorted as Alicia joined them.

Alicia had her broomstick thrown over her shoulder. "Are we ready?"  
>Angelina nodded and picked up her own broomstick. Then, she rummaged around in her bag until she found a sliver whistle and threw it around her neck. It was go time. "Lead the way, ladies."<p>

Katie gathered up her broom and followed the other two out of the locker room. Quidditch season was underway.

She walked out onto the pitch. There was a number of people clutching broomsticks to their chests standing on the field as was there was number of people gathered in the stands. She was pleased to see that most of the people in the stands were Gryffindors. She looked in the corner of the stands and saw half a dozen of Slytherins sitting there. As far as she knew, they were not members of the Slytherin Quidditch Team.

Fred and George emerged from the tunnel carrying the box of balls between them. Their Beaters bats and broomsticks were in a tight grip in their other hand. They smiled at the hopefuls and strolled over to the rest of the team. They dropped the crate at Angelina's feet.

"At your service," Fred said as he bowed deeply.

"There is no need to thank us," George added.

Angelina did not even crack a smile. Katie thought that this was not a good sign. Angelina always attempted to smile at the twins. Today was different. The pressure was getting to her.

"Wasn't planning on it," Alicia said as she unlocked the crate.

Katie snorted.

The twins did not say anything.

"Okay, team," Angelina said in a serious tone. "If you see anything off about the tryout people, point it out. We need someone who is a good fit for everyone." She paused. "Even for those of us who could not be here."

They all gazed at the castle. They knew she was talking about Harry, who was serving detention with Umbridge.

"Okay, then." She walked away from them and over to the hopefuls. She gave them in pep talk that the other team could not hear. Within in minutes, the hopefuls were in the air. Angelina was on her way back to the team.

"Let's do this," Angelina said as she kicked off.

Katie mounted her broom and kicked off. Once in the air, she studied the new people. Most of them she knew would be ruled out pretty quickly. A few of them looked promising. She watched as one fought to stay on his broom. He had flaming red hair.

Ron Weasley was trying out for Gryffindor Keeper.

Fred was a few meters away from Katie. "Well, look what the cat brought in."

"You didn't know?" Katie asked. She was surprised. She thought the Weasley family was pretty close.

"No," he said wincing as Ron dived the wrong way. "I just hope he does not embarrass us too much."  
>Katie studied Ron, who looked determined, but at the same time did not have a clue. He dived and managed to save it, but dropped it from excitement. She knew that he would fit the team, but did not know if he would fit a team that wanted to win. With Ron on the team, equilibruim would be reached. With Ron the team, the Cup would not be theirs.<p>

"Me too," Katie said. "Me too."


	34. Chapter 34: Hero

Chapter Thirty-Four: Hero

Disclaimer: All characters belong to J.K. Rowling. The underlined portions are taken directly from the novel; I do not own those parts. They belong to J.K. Rowling.

Author's Note: This fanfiction is going to be different from my other stories. This begins during Chamber of Secrets and goes up until three years after the Dark War. So, pay attention the time, so you don't get confused. Some of the chapters are other Marcus Flint/Katie Bell stories, just with more changes and deleted scenes added.

Time: Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

Genre: Romance, Drama, and Friendship

Rating: PG-13

**This is just a really short chapter involving the Golden Trio.**

Hermione sat in front of the Gryffindor fireplace staring into its' empty form. Something needed to be down about Umbridge. They were not learning anything. She was concerned about her grades, but she also wanted to be able to defend herself if the time came. The time was most certainly going to come.

She looked as Ron and Harry sat down next to her. Both boys looked as if they could fall asleep on their feet at any moment. Angelina was having intense practices. The team said that she was worse than Wood ever had been.

Harry pushed his untidy hair off his forehead. It was getting longer and even more uncontrollable. There was a large red patch on the back of his right hand. He saw her looking and pulled his robe shelve down.

Hermione grabbed Harry's arm and forced the shelve back up. Craved into his hand was the words: I will not tell lies. She stared at the skin. There was only one person who could have possibly done this. "That hag," she hissed as she let Harry's arm drop. "You have to report this, Harry."  
>Harry stood up and walked around the common room. "And do what, Hermione?" He paused. "She will make everyone more miserable than they already are. I told the truth. That was all I did and no one is going suffer because of me."<p>

Hermione looked at Ron. By the look on his face, she knew that she was not going to get any help from him. "We have to do something at least."

Ron was looking away now.

"We need a teacher to teach us," Hermione said slowly. She was unsure as to how Harry was going to take this. "Ron and I have been discussing this."

Ron's eyes perked up. "I thought about poison. One big dose and she would be history."

Hermione gave him a dirty look. "I was thinking something more civilized to fix her teaching problem. We can't complain about her." She took a deep breath. "The only thing we can do is to teach it ourselves."

"Do what?" Harry asked. His voice was full of suspicion.

"We teach ourselves Defense Against the Dark Arts." She looked at the boys who were gaping at her. "It's more work, but it will be worth it." The boys started to complain, but she shut them down. "It's about getting ready for what is out there."

"We could look some stuff up..." Ron mused.

Hermione did not think that would cut it. "We need a real teacher, a proper one."

"We could ask Lupin-" Harry started in.

"No," Hermione looked down at her hands. "I was talking about you Harry. You could be everyone's hero and show them how to defend themselves against V-Voldemort."

It was the first time that she had said the Dark Lord's name. It felt strange to say it, but at the same time, it proved her with relief. Lord Voldemort would not hold anything over her. She was going to attempt to stand up and fight for what was right.

Judging by the looks on Harry's and Ron's faces, she had just done that.

**To find out what happens read chapter sixteen in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. Not my best chapter. I am not used to writing about the Golden Trio. Do not expect their chapters to be very long. **


	35. Chapter 35: Discussion

Chapter Thirty-Five: Discussion

Disclaimer: All characters belong to J.K. Rowling. The underlined portions are taken directly from the novel; I do not own those parts. They belong to J.K. Rowling.

Author's Note: This fanfiction is going to be different from my other stories. This begins during Chamber of Secrets and goes up until three years after the Dark War. So, pay attention the time, so you don't get confused. Some of the chapters are other Marcus Flint/Katie Bell stories, just with more changes and deleted scenes added.

Time: Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

Genre: Romance, Drama, and Friendship

Rating: PG-13

Haley leaned back against the soft chair she was lounging on in the Slytherin common room. A lot of her fellow housemates were absent from the room. They were probably at the Gryffindor Quidditch Team's first practice poking jokes at them. She sighed and turned a page in her Charms textbook. People really needed to get a life.

Miley Pucey was sitting in a chair across from her. Even though her brother was on the team, she showed no interest in the sport. She would rather join a club than do actual psychical activity. Haley did not mind Quidditch and played it over the summer. She just was not sure if she wanted to play on House team. They took it so serious and she just wanted to have fun.

Miley looked over the top of her own book. "It's so peaceful here without everyone." She paused. "I don't see way people think that all Slytherins and Gryffindors hate each other."

Haley did not understand that either. The bitterness between the two houses did get old pretty quickly. She did not expect everyone to get along perfectly, but she did expect them to be somewhat civil toward each other. "Yeah, I know."

"No offense, but your brother and Wood took it to the extreme," Miley mused.

Haley could not disagree. Marcus and Wood were so similar in their actions and beliefs that it was to the point that it was sickening. They were so much alike that it was as if they were one person. As a result, they both hated each other with a burning passion. "I know he did." She paused. "He's kind of gotten over it somewhat. He's more focused on beating United now."

Miley raised her eyebrows. "Isn't that the team Wood plays for?"

"Yep."

"Him and Wood still hate each other?"

"Yep."

Miley smirked. "Think it will ever stop?"

"Nope. Not in a million years."

Miley leaned back further into her seat. "Well, at least, they aren't too bad to look at." Her eyes light up. "I did not mind seeing your brother in his swimming trunks, not at all."

Haley got a horrified look on her face. She could agree that Marcus was not bad to look at, but still he was her brother. It was strange when people mused about him in front of her. It made her feel sick.

Miley's face was light when she saw Haley's face. "What? I can't help it!"

Haley stood up and walked toward the door. "I am not going to sit here and listen to you talk about my brother." She walked out without bothering to turn around. She knew that Miley would not be mad. They had had this argument many times over the years and they always ended with the same result.

Haley strolled down through one of Hogwart's many corridors. She looked over her shoulder and saw that a boy in her year, Harper, was following her again. Stalking her seemed to be one of his favourite hobbies. She wondered what Blaise would do if she ever told him. She sighed and whipped around.

"What do you want?" she demanded.

"Ah, come one Haley," Harper said. "I just want to have a little fun."

She raised an eyebrow. "You call this fun?"

He nodded.

"No wonder you do not have a girlfriend."

"I have many to choose from."

Haley laughed. "Yeah, right."

"You don't believe?"

She started to walk again. "When I see it, I'll believe it."

Haley went out into the courtyard. She was very disappointed. She was hoping that Marcus would write today, but so far he hadn't. It had been so long since she heard from Marcus. He usually wrote to her about once a week but lately he had not been. She figured that he was just busy and did not have time to write. The letters had a wide range of topics: Quidditch, his animals and classes, what he had done to annoy their parents, and so on. She scanned the skies. There was no owl in sight.

She was kind of disappointed. She had been hoping that he would write so she could complain to him about Umbridge. She knew that if Marcus had Umbridge that he would probably be in detention every night like Harry. Like Harry, Marcus could not keep his temper. She thought about it for a little bit. No, Marcus would not be in detention because he would never talk back to her. He would probably do something to her so he would not get caught.

She sighed and went back into the castle. Maybe she would have better luck tomorrow.


	36. Chapter 36: Scream

Chapter Thirty-Six: Scream

Disclaimer: All characters belong to J.K. Rowling. The underlined portions are taken directly from the novel; I do not own those parts. They belong to J.K. Rowling.

Author's Note: This fanfiction is going to be different from my other stories. This begins during Chamber of Secrets and goes up until three years after the Dark War. So, pay attention the time, so you don't get confused. Some of the chapters are other Marcus Flint/Katie Bell stories, just with more changes and deleted scenes added.

Time: Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

Genre: Romance, Drama, and Friendship

Rating: PG-13

Marcus stood in front of the large window that took up the A-Frame part of his house facing the lake. He could saw Damon approaching and briefly wondered why his friend was coming through the back inside of the front. He took a long, drink of coffee. He really could not stand the stuff, but found himself oddly addicted to it. He supposed that it was better than some of his habits.

Damon pushed the door open. "You really should lock your doors, you know," he said in greeting.

"Why lock them when I am here?" Marcus asked.

"You were not here last night and they were unlocked." Damon went into the kitchen and poured himself a cup of coffee. "Speaking of which, where were you?" he asked as he came back.

Last night, Marcus had been in London showing the Order the runes that Natalia had given him. He had translated part of them, but there was still a lot to do. He was not sure how the Order felt about Natalia. If she was willing to offer information, then they would be stupid to turn it down. He agreed with Natalia: people tended to talk in Knockturn Alley. He knew that he could not tell Damon any of that.

"I went to my parent's for a little bit," Marcus said making up a lie. It really was not a lie. He had gone to his parents' house for ten minutes.

Damon took a long drink of coffee. He seemed to buy it. "Question. Since when do you like coffee?"  
>Marcus stared the black substance in his mug. It seemed good, but tasted awful. "I do not really like it."<p>

"Then, why do you drink it?"

"Hastings has been throwing some pretty early practices at us." Marcus watched as some mist rolled off the lake below his house. "This stuff seems to make me fully function in the morning."

"Probably having a hangover makes it worse," Damon mused.

"It is a killer then." Marcus took another drink. "That is why I try to avoid alcohol before practice, games, or seeing my parents."

Damon looked out the window. "You will not be able to drink on weekends once your games start."

Marcus shook his head. "There is always Sunday after my games. We do not have practice on days following games."

"True, true, true." Damon sat his mug down on the table behind him. "Will we ever stop planning on getting drunk?"

Marcus sat his mug down next to Damon's. "We are not as bad as we used to be. I do not think we will do this for the rest of our lives."

"Yeah, our livers would be fired by then."

Marcus looked out the window. With Damon, he was like any other nineteen year old. He could go out and have a life. The Order expected him to behave like he was forty or so. They kept him close and created his own personal Hell. They would not listen to him. He knew that they were using him and probably would drop him as soon as they got the chance. They just made him want to scream. He knew that he could scream, but no one would hear him.

"Yeah, they probably would," Marcus muttered.

Damon looked at his friend. Marcus had been acting quite strangely for a while. He was not sure if something was bothering or if he was just run down. He knew that Marcus had a busy schedule. He was a full time student at university and played Quidditch full time. He also still socialized with his friends and still managed to disappear for hours at a time. He probably just needed a good night's sleep or he just needed to fuss up. There was something going on. Damon just was not sure what that something was.

Marcus looked at his friend. Damon seemed to be thinking about something. He did not ask what that something was. He knew that Damon knew that there was something going on, but would not ask. That was another thing that Marcus liked about Damon. He did not ask questions if the person was not going to tell anything. It was nice to have a friend like that.

There was something going on with both of them. Neither one would tell the other and the other would not ask. It was a mutual friendship. If one wanted to talk, then the other would listen. They were not caged nor did they want to scream. They just had each other to go to whenever they needed to relax or just to have someone there.

"So, are we on for this weekend?" Damon asked.

Marcus sucked in air. It was the last free weekend he would have before weekend games started. The team had done its' celebrating last weekend and he was proud of himself. He did not have one drink. That was mostly because he had an Order meeting and did not think it would be a good idea to show up drunk or hung-over. He did not have anything this weekend. "What the heck," Marcus said.

Damon nodded. "You are buying, by the way," he said. "I am out of gold until next week." Damon was also a student and had recently bought textbooks. His family was wealthy, but Damon himself was not. He did not had access to his trust fund until he turned twenty-one.

Marcus did not have his trust fund either, but had a high paying job. "I think you just set me up."

"Maybe," Damon mused.

Marcus did not know what to say. He did not mind buying. He just would not had thought that Damon would had been the one to say so. Damon was quite by nature and did not usually tell people what to do. He wondered if people truly did change and found their voice.


	37. Chapter 37: Silence

Chapter Thirty-Seven: Silence

Disclaimer: All characters belong to J.K. Rowling. The underlined portions are taken directly from the novel; I do not own those parts. They belong to J.K. Rowling.

Author's Note: This fanfiction is going to be different from my other stories. This begins during Chamber of Secrets and goes up until three years after the Dark War. So, pay attention the time, so you don't get confused. Some of the chapters are other Marcus Flint/Katie Bell stories, just with more changes and deleted scenes added.

Time: Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

Genre: Romance, Drama, and Friendship

Rating: PG-13

**So, this was supposed to be part of the last chapter. I had it typed on a separate Word Document and forget to upload it... **

Damon sat at the bar next to Marcus. Neither of them was in a chatty mood. It did not bother him to sit in silence. He took a drink. It was not unusual for either of them to be quite. He swallowed and felt his throat burn. He did not know why he did this. He really did not like it. He was not sure if Marcus even liked it.

But Marcus could somewhat hold his liquor, unlike Damon.

Marcus glanced over at Damon. He wondered if Damon was like him and not feeling it. Going to the club used to be fun, but now if had lost its' appeal. He may be growing up and coming to realize what really mattered. Partying was just something that did not matter to him anymore.

Damon shoved his drink back and looked at Marcus's barely touched drink. Marcus must not had been in a drinking mood either. Both of them were just out of it. They were just not in touch with what they used to be. It must be a sign.

Things were changing and it was not always in a good way. People were keeping secrets from those they loved. New lines were being drawn. The storm was almost on them and soon all hell was going to break lose. The good times should be enjoyed while they can be. They should hold on to what they could while they could. Things were going to change.

It was not about right or wrong, it was about power. These were not the times to have someone holding power over you. If someone held power over you, they could pull the plug at anytime and your entire world could come crashing down on you. You needed to be in charge of yourself. You needed to have control.

Marcus looked at Damon and broke the silence. "Let us get out of here," he said.

Damon picks his jacket off the back of the chair and pulls it on. "I was hoping you would say that."

Marcus threw some coins on the table and followed his friend out the door as they closed a chapter in their lives.


	38. Chapter 38: Before the Storm

Chapter Thirty-Eight: Before the Storm

Disclaimer: All characters belong to J.K. Rowling. The underlined portions are taken directly from the novel; I do not own those parts. They belong to J.K. Rowling.

Author's Note: This fanfiction is going to be different from my other stories. This begins during Chamber of Secrets and goes up until three years after the Dark War. So, pay attention the time, so you don't get confused. Some of the chapters are other Marcus Flint/Katie Bell stories, just with more changes and deleted scenes added.

Time: Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

Genre: Romance, Drama, and Friendship

Rating: PG-13

Marcus leaned back against his seat. Order meetings were really dull to him. He did not understand the need to have them if nothing had happened yet. He understand that they needed to prepare, but he also believed that they should be doing something instead of just waiting around for the Dark Side to make the first move. All of the waiting around just did not make sense to him.

To him, it seemed as if these people did not really have a clue as to what they were doing. It seemed as if they were playing some kind of game. He did not see any evidence as to what they was preventing.

A lot them did not pay him any mind or take him seriously. He knew that some of it went back to the whole Gryffindor and Slytherin hatred toward each other. The biggest part of it was his youth. That was something that he did not understand at all. They took Harry seriously, but not him.

Marcus knew what the truth was deep down. He knew what he wanted. He had known it for a long time. The truth of the matter was that he wanted out. He did not want to be out of the fight. He knew what side he belonged to and it was light. However, he believed that there was a different way to do things.

He believed that the Gryffindors should trust the Slytherins. The Dark Side trusted Slytherins and were willing to spill most of its' secrets to them. It did not matter who the Slytherin was, they would spill. Slytherin was a close house, but they also talked. It was something that the Order seemed to fail to notice. People talked. People would had and always would talk. Sometimes rather than taking action, it was sometimes better to listen. He found that worked on the Quidditch pitch and did not see why it would not work here.

Sometimes it was just good to take a step back and breathe before the storm. The storm was coming and there was nothing they could do about it. They just had to step back and relax before it got here. They needed to enjoy what they had for now, because it was not going to last for much longer. For when she finally crashed onto their shores, it was going to be ugly.

Most importantly, he wanted to see Katie before the storm.

Katie ran her hands through her long, blond hair. Dumbledore's Army seemed to a necessary to her. They needed to learn how to defend themselves. It was not for school purposes. It was for what was waiting for them out there in the real world. She knew that school was not going to last forever and they needed to be prepared. That was why she was willing to risk her Hogwarts career.

She sighed and leaned back against her dorm pillows. She wanted to see Marcus. She had not seen him in months. They had talked through letters and on their mobiles, but that had been it. Sure, she had seen pictures of him in the press, but it was not the same. She wanted to see him in person. She wanted to hold him and breath in his sweet scent.

Katie was not trying to sound like one of those girls who needed to be around her boyfriend every day, all day. She just wanted to see him for a little bit. It had been months since she seen him. That made her feel justified in her demands.

She bent down and picked the stuffed horse that Marcus had gotten her for her last birthday. Horses were his favourite animal and he was trying to get her into them. She had been shocked to find out that he was into horses. He seemed like the least likely person to be into horses. She hugged the brown horse close. She missed him.

She thought about picking up her mobile and calling him. She glanced at her watch. It was only seven o'clock. He was probably out with friends or something. He probably would not pick his mobile up. Then again, it was Tuesday. He was probably home after a long practice at Falmouth. It was worth a try in her mind.

Katie picked her mobile off her nightstand, strolled through her contacts until she found his number, and called it. If it went to voicemail, she would just hang up and try again later. It was ringing now.

"Hello?" Marcus answered after the first couple of rings.

Katie smiled into her mobile. She was so happy to hear his voice. "Hey, I just wanted to ask you something."

"Oh?" Marcus asked.

Wherever he was there must had been a lot of people. She could hear them talking in the background. It did not sound as if he was at a club or something. It sounded like he was at someone's house. Maybe he was at his parents.

"Katie?" Marcus asked again.

Katie snapped out her daze. "Can you came to Hogsmeade this weekend?"

"Um, sure," Marcus said.

Katie smiled. She just had to see him. She knew that things were going to change and she wanted one final chance to be with him before the storm. "You don't have any game?"

"Um, not on Saturday," he said.

"Excellent," she said, "see you then." She hung up feeling lighter than she had in weeks. She was going to enjoy herself before this fast, approaching storm rocked their shores.


	39. Chapter 39: This Afternoon

Chapter Thirty-Nine: This Afternoon

Disclaimer: All characters belong to J.K. Rowling. The underlined portions are taken directly from the novel; I do not own those parts. They belong to J.K. Rowling.

Author's Note: This fanfiction is going to be different from my other stories. This begins during Chamber of Secrets and goes up until three years after the Dark War. So, pay attention the time, so you don't get confused. Some of the chapters are other Marcus Flint/Katie Bell stories, just with more changes and deleted scenes added.

Time: Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

Genre: Romance, Drama, and Friendship

Rating: PG-13

**Bold: Flashback**

Katie could not wait until the weekend. She was finally going to get to see Marcus. Quidditch season was going badly. She did not think that they were going to win the Cup this year. Dumbledore's Army was going great, but it took up some much time. She knew that she needed it. Her classes were okay. She was currently in her first year of N.E. . She just needed a break. She needed a chance to unwind and enjoy the day.

Or just even the afternoon.

She just wanted to make it all slow down. She wished that Marcus was still at Hogwarts and they could just plan to met somewhere. She wished that everything was the way it was a few years ago. She knew that in her heart things would never get to be like that. She knew that in her heart it was all changing.

Katie took a deep breath as she pushed open the Great Hall door. Angelina would be waiting for her, wanting to rant about whatever was bothering her. Every group had someone that people went to too rant about and Katie just happened to be that person in their group. She did not mind too much. There was some days that she welcomed it and others that she wished that everyone would just crawl into a hole and die.

She found Angelina and Alicia sitting halfway down the Gryffindor table. They had their heads bent and were wishing about something. They jerked apart when Katie sat down next to them.

"So, what is up?" Katie asked them. She reached for a chicken leg.

"Ready for Hogsmeade?"

Katie took a bit of her chicken and chewed. She was ready for Hogsmeade. Most importantly, she was ready to see Marcus. "Yeah."

"Well, what do you want to do first?" Angelina asked.

"Um, actually Marcus is coming up," Katie said as she swallowed. "Sorry."

"Oh," Angelina said her face falling.

Katie waited for the other girl to make some comment about Marcus. It made her disappointed that one did not come.

"Well, ask him what to do about Ron," Angelina said as she snapped back into business mode.

Katie sighed. She had hoped to have one afternoon, one meal even, that did not involve discussing Ron's Keeper abilities. She did not understand why Angelina put him on the team if she was just going to complain about him.

"Please?" Angelina asked.

"Sure," Katie said. She did not know what kind of answer Marcus would give her considering they were going to play Slytherin next weekend. She would try. After all, what were friends for?

**Later that afternoon, they went back to the Muggle world. Katie wanted to introduce Marcus to fast food. He just did not understand how restaurants could serve food fast. **

**Katie thought she better ask the question before he made a complete idiot of himself. "Have you ever eaten in a restaurant?" **

** Marcus looked offended. "Yeah." **

** "Just checking." **

** "Do you think I am stupid?" **

** "Do you want me to answer that truthfully or not?" **

** "That depends on your answer." **

** Katie shook her head and rolled her eyes. Boys were always the same, no matter is they were wizard or Muggle. **

** "Does that head shake mean I am not stupid?" **

** "No, I was mocking you." She stopped outside of a McDonalds. She thought that she had better keep it simple (Subway would have been too difficult for him. Too many choices.) "For the record, I don't think you're stupid, just unintelligent." Now, that would give him something to ponder on. **

** Katie led the way into McDonalds. She watched as Marcus stared down the meal. He looked completely lost. **

** "What do you want?" she asked him. **

** "What are you getting?" he asked. **

** "A Big Mac." **

** "Most girls I know wouldn't touch a hamburger." He looked down at her expression. "What? You look shocked, why?"**

** "You know what a Big Mac is?" Katie asked. She was in disbelief that he knew that. Most wizards didn't know about a Big Mac, probably never even heard of one before. **

** "Yeah." **

** Katie narrowed her eyes and put an accusing expression on her face. "Have you been here before?" **

** "In London, yes. In McDonalds, no." **

** "Then how did you know?" **

** "I know one thing and you seem shocked, Bell." **

** "Have you ever heard of a Big Mac?" **

** "Yeah, that's what we're discussing here." **

** She walked up to the cashier, ordered two Big Macs (to go), and looked at him. "Aren't you going to pay?" He handed her a roll of Muggle money and gave her the look that proclaimed: I do not know the Muggle money system. She rolled her eyes and counted out the correct amount. **

** While they were waiting on their food, Katie turned to Marcus again. "Seriously, how did you know about the Big Mac?" **

** "I just knew." **

** Before she could question him anymore, their food came and they exited the McDonalds. **

** Once they were outside Marcus turned to Katie. "Besides, there was a picture next to it." **

** If Katie had not been carrying their food, she would have slapped him. **  
>Marcus rolled over and looked at his alarm clock. It was one o'clock in the afternoon. He hated late night Quidditch games. They threw his sleeping habits way off. He went to bed a six o'clock this morning. On non-game days, that was the time he was getting up and heading to practice. His job really messed with his life.<p>

He buried himself further into his blankets and felt them rub against his bare chest. He hated being cold. He supposed that he could get up and lower the thermostat or pull sweatpants over his shorts and put a shirt on. Both involved so much effort. It was effort that he did not wish to use this afternoon.

He supposed that he should consider himself lucky that he had not gotten severely injured since the start of his professional career. He had had the minor ones pretty regularly, but so far nothing major. Probably thinking about how lucky he had been was going to jinx him now.

Life was going good for him now. He had a good job, a beautiful girlfriend, and there had been no threats on his life. It was good and there was going to be nothing better than spending this afternoon in bed.

He had not told anyone about the dream he had a Christmas time and he was not going to. The last thing he wanted was for people to think he was nuts. Bellatrix Lestrange had stabbed him in that dream. He knew that it was impossible for it to happen, because she was in Azkaban.

No, he knew that it was not impossible. With the Dark Lord back, Marcus knew that lazy afternoons would become a thing of the past. He knew that he had better enjoy lying here in bed this afternoon thinking about what he was going to tell Katie next weekend.

**So, after a lot of thought I have decided to split this story. The next chapter will be the last one for "The Heart of Everything." The first chapters of "Shallow Bay" will be published August 2012. **


	40. Chapter 40: The Heart of Everything

Chapter Forty: The Heart of Everything

Disclaimer: All characters belong to J.K. Rowling. The underlined portions are taken directly from the novel; I do not own those parts. They belong to J.K. Rowling.

Author's Note: This fanfiction is going to be different from my other stories. This begins during Chamber of Secrets and goes up until three years after the Dark War. So, pay attention the time, so you don't get confused. Some of the chapters are other Marcus Flint/Katie Bell stories, just with more changes and deleted scenes added.

Time: Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

Genre: Romance, Drama, and Friendship

Rating: PG-13

_**Sorry, for the unexpected hiatus. Tornados touched down in nearby towns and knocked out our Internet. Then, some loser decided to set hay bales on fire the next night and we had to make sure that they were not ours. **_

Natalia leaned back against her bed and stared at her book without reading the words on it. She had not heard anymore from Marcus about the Runes and was getting concerned. Her client would be coming any day now and she really needed to have the Runes to present to him. She knew that was what she got for trusting a teenage boy. She sighed and threw her book down on the floor. This was going to call for her to get down and dirty, two things that she did not like to do.

She walked over to her window and crossed her arms over her chest. Knockturn Alley was very quiet today. It was rather unusual. She wondered why all of those who practiced the Dark Arts for a living were gone. It was as if they were hiding. When the Dark Ones hid, something bad had happened or was just about to happened.

A screech owl landed on her window seal. She pulled open the window to let the owl it. It flew in quickly and landed on her bed. Natalia crossed the room and went over to the owl, which was holding its' leg out. She could see the piece of paper tied around its' leg. She untied it and the owl flew out the window.

She unrolled the paper and smoothed it out. She was relieved to see Marcus's neat handwriting going across the page. She read what he had written and it was not as much as she had expected.

_ It was a repeat of the same thing. The Runes kept saying, "Soon we will be united and together on the other side. Soon I will embrace you and we will bring them all down." It was just repeated in different dialects. _

_~Marcus~ _

Natalia sat down on her bed. None of that made any sense. She supposed that her client would know what to make of it. She was not sure how the Order was going to take it, but she had held up her end of the bargain with them. They had the same information that she had. She had done all that she could and there was nothing else to be down.

She walked back over to her window and looked out at the empty street again. Business was going to be slow today, she noted as she slammed the window shut.

Katie moved her breakfast back and forth across her plate. She was not hungry for some reason. It was probably because she would be seeing Marcus in a few hours. Yes, she knew that she was obsessed with him and that she needed to stop. However, she did not see why she should stop. Girls here moaned about not seeing their boyfriends for a few hours and she had not seen hers for months.

Angelina had talked about having practice today while everyone was at Hogsmeade. Katie had shut her down and threatened her. Angelina had been shocked by Katie's reaction that she did not push the issue any further. Katie guessed that she was learning some things from Marcus after all.

Katie took a drink of her orange juice.

Angelina slid in next to her. Her black hair was pulled back into a high pony tail. She was wearing gray yoga pants and a red top. "So, is he coming?" she asked. Her voice was filled with hatred.

"Yes," Katie said. She had her blond hair loose and was wearing blue jeans and a loose flowered top. She had curled her hair into soft waves and was wearing a touch of light makeup. She usually never bothered dressing up, but today she wanted to.

Angelina buttered a bagel and took a bit before speaking again. "Are you going to ask him what I asked you too?" she said speaking with her mouth full.

Katie took a bit of egg so she would not have to answer right away. She knew that Marcus may help because she had asked. Then again, because the first match was against Slytherin, he may not. She loved him, but not want to risk drawing them apart. They needed to work on them. Quidditch would just draw them apart and she did not want to risk losing him again.

"If I remember," she said slowly. She may accidently on purpose forget to bring it up. She really did not want to discuss the Gryffindor Quidditch team with him. It was something that she would rather avoid.

Angelina nodded. "Well, please try to remember." She took another bit of her bagel. "Our team's existence my depend on it."

Katie knew that Angelina was still mad that Umbridge for cancelling the team last week. She knew that Angelina had had to appeal to other teachers in order for Gryffindor to get the right to practice again. It had been a very dark few days.

Katie sighed. "I will do the best I could."

Angelina smiled. "Thanks and tell Marcus thanks if he can help us."

Katie was stunned. Angelina had never called Marcus by his name-first or last. She knew that Quidditch often divided people and brought them together. She had never thought that two Houses with a rivalry as old as time would ever rely on each other because of the game.

Marcus gripped the sides of his vanity in his towel. He was so exhausted. In the last two days, he had gotten a total of five hours of sleep. He could see that his cheek bones stuck out more than usual and it looked as if he had two black eyes. He was paler than usual and it looked as if he had lost weight. Between his classes, Quidditch, and the Order, he did not have time to breath, let alone sleep. Mostly he acted as it everything was okay, when it was not.

He normally slept most of the day on Saturday, but he had really wanted to see Katie today. She was the only thing that remained constant in his life. He did not want to bring her into all of the war stuff, but if he did not he feared that he would lose her again. He was not about to let that happen again.

He ran his hand over his face. He needed to shave. Katie did not like it when he did not shave. With a sigh, he picked up his razor and shaved until his face was smooth. After that, he padded out into his bedroom that was connected to the bathroom. He dropped his towel and pulled on his boxers. He rummaged around in his dresser until he found a clean blue button down shirt and a pair of black jeans. He pulled them on and grabbed his belt off the floor. There he was ready. He just needed to put on his boots and socks.

He padded barefoot downstairs. He was not all that surprised to see his dad sitting on the coach flipping through channels. His dad had not been around much the last few weeks. Brad usually liked to discuss Order stuff with him.

Brad looked up as he son came in. He looked at Marcus. "Going somewhere?"

Marcus sat down next to his father and rested his feet on the coffee table. "Yeah, I am going to see Katie."

Brad nodded and turned the television off. "Good, you need to enjoy yourself while you are young."

Marcus nodded and crossed his arms over his chest. He really hoped that this was not going to turn into one of those father son talks. He hated them. A few years ago, those talks only happened whenever Marcus was in trouble. Now, they did not happen at all and he liked it that way.

Brad studied Marcus. "Have you lost weight?" There was a note of concern in his voice.

Marcus shrugged.

Brad eyed Marcus closely, but did not push the matter. He kept quiet and stood up. "Well, I will not hold you up any longer."

Marcus nodded. He picked up the Runes off the coffee table. "Here."

Brad took then and looked at them. He nodded and disappeared without saying a word.

Haley stood with her arms crossed outside of the castle. Marcus's owl was approaching her very slowly. She thought that if was if time had stopped. She still had not forgiven her brother for taking so long to write to her. She understood that he was busy, but she was his sister. She felt that she did deserve to be somewhat important in his life.

The screech owl landed on her shoulder. She was glad that it did not dig its' claws into her like it did Marcus. She took the letter that was wrapped around the owl's leg and the owl flew away. She untied it and read it.

The letter was short and it left her disappointed. All it said was to watch out for Harry and his gang. They were up to something and that it could get the rest of the Order in trouble. She put the letter in her robe pocket. Sometimes her brother did not make a lot of sense and today was one of those days. She knew that she could not know a lot of information and that it was too dangerous to put stuff in the mail, but she wished that she could be more involved in it.

What Marcus told her was pushing the boundaries. He told her more than he was supposed. He thought that she should not be kept in the dark. She walked back into the castle. He would tell her was going on sometime. Haley knew that he would.

Damon walked into his mother's house. He did not come home very often, but today he was in a visiting mood. His twin sister, Ever, still lived at home, but home had not felt like home since his father was killed. He just could not bring himself to stay there any longer once he became of age.

Mrs. Knightly smiled as her son came into the kitchen. She looked like her children, blond and blue eyed. "Hi," she said in a tone that made Damon feel as if he had been gone for a few hours instead of months.

Damon lopped his fingers through his belt holes. "Um, hey."

Mrs. Knightly stood up from the kitchen table and went over to her son. She pulled him into her arms and Damon did not fight her. "I have missed you," she whispered.

Damon blinked hard. It had just realized how much he had missed his mum. She had always been there for him for as long as he remembered. Through the good and the bad, she had always stuck by his side.

"I missed you too." He pulled away from her and looked down at her. "Mum, things are getting bad again."

Mrs. Knightly bit her lip. "I know. It is starting just like it did last time." She reached out and touched Damon's face. "As long as we stick together, we will make it. Divided we will fall."

Damon nodded. They would be okay this time. Nothing bad could happen.

~***~  
>Katie felt her smile widen as she saw Marcus approach her. He looked just as lovely as ever from a distance. As he got closer, she could see how worn he looked. He looked older than his nineteen years. His skin was paler than usual and his clothes hung loosely on him. Nevertheless, he still looked beautiful and was hers.<p>

She ran over to him and threw her arms around his neck and breathed in his wonderful boy smell. She never knew that boys could smell so good. He was hers and that was never going to change, no matter happened. She pulled apart and took both of his hands into hers. "I missed you."

He smiled. His dark eyes were light. "Me too." He leaned in and kissed her.

His lips were soft. It always surprised her how soft his lips actually were. Everything else about his body was toned and rough. No, Katie took that back. His hair was soft.

Marcus broke the kiss a few minutes later. He needed to tell Katie something. He was not going to let anymore pull them apart. In order to share his heart, he could not hide anything anymore. It was time to come clean. He did not care what the Order said about not letting people know about them. Secrets had almost ended their relationship this past summer and he was not going to go through that again.

He was just going to face it, because the Order was the heart of everything.

Marcus lead Katie over to Three Broomsticks. They sat down at a private table and ordered butterbeers. Once the waitress was gone, Katie looked at Marcus with an odd expression on her face.

"What?" Marcus asked. He rested his elbows on the table.

"Not drinking anything stronger?" she asked.

Marcus stared at the table. He had not told Katie that he had quit drinking. She had been trying to get him to stop for two years. "I quit."

Katie smiled. She had thought that she would had never heard those words from him. "Good for you," she said.

Their drinks came.

Marcus took a long drink of his before speaking. "I have something to tell you."

Katie sat her drink down. "What is it?" she asked gently.

"You cannot tell anyone else what I am about to tell you."

Katie nodded slowly. She could tell that whatever he was going to tell her was going to be good in terms of talks. It may not be good for them. Whatever it was, she did not care. Whatever it was, they would face it together, because it was truly the heart of everything.

Marcus took a deep breath and told her everything.

**That Evening, London**

Marcus arrived at the Order headquarters to check in. Katie had taken the news of the Order well, in his opinion. He could hear people talking in the first floor study and followed their voices. In the study, he saw Remus, Sirius, Tonks, and Kingsley. They all stopped talking once he entered.

"Do not stop because of me," Marcus said as he sat down in a chair.

They all looked at him.  
>"You are the last to know about this," Sirius said slowly.<p>

"About what?" Marcus said. He really did not understand.

"Come in," Sirius called. "My brother had a daughter."

Marcus knew that Sirius's brother had been killed during that last dark war and that was about it. He watched as a figure filled the doorway. She was familiar. Her long, dirty blond hair bounced off the her shoulders as she entered.

"Hello, again," she said with a smile.

Marcus glared up at her. He had hoped that once he had left Hogwarts he would never have to see her again. He guessed that he was not going to be that lucky.

She smiled and crossed her arms over her chest. "You grew up good," she said to Marcus.

Marcus looked away.

"You two know each other?" Sirius asked.

Marcus did not answer.

"You could say that we were pretty friendly at one time." Her eyes was dancing.

Marcus could not believe it. He was going to have to see her again. He looked everywhere, but at her. He knew that she was not going way.

Avril Lestrange stepped past him. "Shall we get to work?"

**The End...for now**

**The Heart of Everything: Shallow Bay begins August 2012. The next two chapters contain extras about the story. Thanks for reading! **


	41. Chapter 41: Soundtrack

Author's Note

I rated this story "T" for brief mild language, violence, sensuality, teenage partying, and innuendo.

Okay, you guys should know by now that I get most of my story ideas from music. So, here's the artists and songs that made this story possible.

12 Stones: Adrenaline

78violet: Belong Here

Aly and AJ: Rush

Aly and AJ: Silence

Avril Lavigne: Complicated

Avril Lavigne: Not Enough

Breaking Benjamin: Blow Me Away

Breaking Benjamin: Breath

Bruno Mars: It Will Rain

Evanescence: What You Want

Flyleaf: Sorrow

Hilary Duff: Coming Clean

Krypteria: Scream

Lacuna Coil: I Won't Tell You

Lacuna Coil: Spellbound

Lykke Li: Possibility

Miley Cyrus: Girls Night Out (G.N.O)

Nemesea: Cry

Nick Jonas and Miley Cyrus: Before the Storm

Nickelback: This Afternoon

Paramore: Renegade

Sirenia: Save Me From Myself

Skillet: Hero

Stone Sour: Made of Scars

Taylor Swift: Enchanted

The Agonist: Serendipity

Theory of A Deadman: End of the Summer

Trans-Siberian Orchestra: Carol of the Bells

Tristania: Equilibrium

Vanessa Hudgens: Let's Dance

Vanessa Hudgens: Say Okay

We Are the Fallen: Bury Me Alive

Within Temptation: Stand My Ground

Within Temptation: The Heart of Everything


	42. Chapter 42: Character Links

Author's Note

The links below are an attempt to illustrate what the characters in this story look like. I do not own any of the links. A lot are the same actors who played them in the movie. I will list the names of the actors used. I did my best to find updated pictures of some of the cast, but I could not find them all. Note not all characters are listed here, just the ones that appear a lot. Some of the links did not take for some reason.

Marcus Flint: Jamie Yeates .

Katie Bell: Georgina Leonidas (only with blond hair) harrypotter?

images/c/c5/Georgina_

Haley Flint: Miley Cyrus .us/albums/userpics/10001/normal_

Damon Knightly: Zach Roerig .

Natalia Woods: Ji-In Cho photo/62/18/94/ musas_metaleras/

1269302754809_

Adrian Pucey: Scot Fearn .

Chris Derrick (Peregrine Derrick in books): Darren Criss .a

/-800wi

Blaise Zabini: Louis Cordice /photos/celebrites/15042/_thumbs/louis-cordice_jpg_250x250_

Angelina Johnson: TianaBenjamin . /soaps/eastenders/

160x120_east_tianabenjamin_

Alicia Spinnet: Rochelle Douglas . /_ cb20110816170509/harrypotter

/images/thumb/5/53/Rochelle_ /250px-Rochelle_

Leanne Robison: Isabella Laughland images/search?q=Isabella+

Laughland&view=detail&id=&first=0&FORM=IDFRIR

Fred Weasley: James Phelps . / gi/James+Phelp s+Harry

+Potter+Deathly+ Hallows+

George Weasley: Oliver Phelps . / gi/Oliver+Phelps+Apple+Store

+Soho+Presents+Meet+

Ginny Weasley: Bonnie Wright .

Oliver Wood: Sean Biggerstaff .

Lee Jordon: Luke Youngblood /images/M/MV5BMTk

._V1._SX640_SY960_.jpg

Ron Weasley: Rupert Grint wiki/File:Rupert_Grint_

Hermione Granger: Emma Watson wiki/File: Emma_Watson_2012_

Jamie Taubenfeld : Colton Haynes .

Raine Daniels: Lacey Sturm .

Brad Flint: J.R. Bourne . /_cb20091129081620

/stargate/images/thumb/2/2f/JR_ /250px-JR_

Jasmine Flint: Sharon den Adel .

Remus Lupin: David Thewlis wiki/File:David_Thewlis_

Kingsley Shacklebolt: George Harris application/

frontend/images/castAndCrew/George_Harris_

Nymphadora Tonks: Natalia Tena wiki/File:Natalia_

Arthur Weasley: Mark Williams .

Sirius Black: Gary Oldman harrypotter/images/7/75/Sirius_Black_

Avril Lastrange: Avril Lavigne images/search?

q=avril+lavigne&view=detail&id=&first=181&FORM=IDFRIR


End file.
